Man dies of medical issue hours after Amherst Police put him in drunk tank

UPDATE: The Serious Incident Response Team said Sept. 30 it has concluded its investigationand clearedAmherst Police of wrongdoing in the death of the 71-year-old man.

Nova Scotia's police watchdog is investigating following the death Sunday ofa 71-year-old man who Amherst police took into custody the previous day for public intoxication.

Deputy Chief Timothy Huntersaid policediscovered the man outsidein the Willow Street area early Saturday morning.

They took him into custodyand placed him in cells.

At some point on Saturday, police realized the man's condition was deteriorating, and they called an ambulance.

"On the evening of the 29th, we were made aware that the gentleman had further complications medical issues," said Hunter.

Police said he died on Sunday in hospital.

Hunter wouldn't saywhere the man was from, only that his family has been notified. He said he waslimited in what he couldsay because of the team's investigation.

"If there's anything that we can do to help them, we're more than happy to," said Hunter."We will be doing that, and reaching out more as the investigation progresses."

It's now up to the Serious Incident Response Team to determine if police acted appropriately.The team said the provincial medical examiner's office was conducting an autopsy Tuesday.