Madikeri : A 50-year-old mentally unstable man was beaten to death, allegedly by policemen, for violating lockdown norms last week, following which eight of them have been suspended, a senior police officer said on Sunday.

The policemen were booked on a complaint by the man’s brother Robin D’Souza, based on which a case was registered against them, Inspector General of Police, Karnataka Southern Range, Praveen Madhukar Pawar, told reporters.

He said the Deputy Superintendent of Police of Virajpet had furnished a report against eight policemen, based on which they have been suspended.

“An inquiry is being conducted by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate. As per the National Human Rights Commission guidelines, we are handing over the case to the CID,” Pawar added.

Family members said that Roy D’Souza, who was mentally unstable, was living with his mother, while his brother Robin was in Bengaluru. Roy ran away from his house late at night on June 8.

The policemen found him wandering about, questioned him for violating the lockdown norms and thrashed him, they said.

Early on June 9, his mother was summoned to the police station, where she found Roy lying unconscious, the family said.

He was rushed to a local private hospital and from there to the district hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

Learning about it, Robin rushed to Madikeri and lodged a complaint with the Superintendent of Police, Kshama Mishra, they said.