Another complaint of authorities not holding an inquest following deaths in custody has surfaced, this time involving a convict who "died by hanging" just three months before he was due to be released from prison.

Lawyer M Manoharan (photo), who is also the former Kota Alam Shah assemblyperson, said M Mageswaran, who was to be released from the Seremban prison on July 30, 2017, after serving a 14-year jail sentence, was found dead on April 24, 2017.

"By a letter dated Jan 3, 2019, the Negeri Sembilan prosecutor director Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin promised an inquest to be held in the Seremban Sessions Court over the death of Mageswaran.

"Despite the promise, the Attorney-General's Chambers to date has yet to hold an inquest on the death of Mageswaran," he said in a statement today.

Manoharan also shared the letter from the state deputy public prosecutor office promising the inquest.

Concurrently, Manoharan said the family has also filed a civil suit against the government for alleged negligence on Dec 31, 2018.

Yesterday, lawyers for the family of Nigerian national Thomas Orhions Ewansiha, who died in an immigration detention centre on July 4, complained that an inquest was not held despite four months having passed since his death.

In a statement today, lawyers Rajesh Nagarajan and Sachpreetraj Singh said they were informed the investigation papers have yet to be completed as of October.

"It is truly appalling that investigations have not been completed despite almost four months have passed since Mr Thomas' death," said the two lawyers.

However, Bukit Aman CID (prosecution and legal division) principal assistant director Mior Faridalathrash Wahid said police already submitted the investigation papers to the Attorney-General's Chambers in August.