A family in Belmopan is left devastated, distraught, and disturbed after they claim their loved one received life threatening injuries while in police detention. 26-year-old Daniel Cal spent 4 days locked up at the Belmopan Station, but by the time his mother and sister finally saw him, he was barely alive, with bruises over his body and stitches in his head.

They say the officers repeatedly told them he was okay, and refused to let them see him until it was too late. And while they got him to the hospital on Tuesday night, he passed away this morning.

It's a tragedy that they cannot fathom since they believed that the police failed in their duty of care while he was in their custody. Courtney Menzies met them outside the Western Regional Hospital shortly after Cal's passing. Here is her story - but we warn you that our story does contain some intense images of his injuries - which the family asked us to use - but which may be too much for sensitive viewers.

On Friday night, 26-year-old Daniel Cal was detained by police. Almost one week later, at around 10 this morning, he passed away in the hospital after spending 4 days in police custody.

During that time, his family spoke to him once over the phone, but did not see him at all. It wasn't until Tuesday that they found him almost unconscious on the floor of the cellblock.

They believe he was beaten by officers in the cell and left for dead. His sister said she became suspicious from Sunday when they wouldn't allow her to see him.

Rosalina Teul, Sister of Deceased
"We didn't hear anything from him that he was detained nothing until we found, I think he borrowed a phone to call my ma and he was good. I need clothes, I'm going to court, he said. I took the clothes Sunday night to the Belmopan station. On arrival I spoke to a police officer, I asked them, I want to leave my brother's clothes. He said, okay."

"I went to buy an electrolytes and a water because I don't know if he's eating or what but I want to make sure his body is hydrated. I came back to leave the water and it's like that I asked the police man if I can talk to him, he said, no he's alright where he is. That is what I remember that PC tell me and I remember it clearly."

"We already had an instinct that something was going on. My mom already catch the police beating him in custody."

Cal was supposed to go to court on Monday, but that never happened. Since Tuesday was a holiday, they decided to go visit him. And that's when they were met with a disturbing, heartbreaking sight.

Rosalina Teul, Sister of Deceased
"They open the thing, they told us to tend to him. They open the cage, the cellblock. My brother was by himself, naked. My brother was already looked like he was gone, I didn't want to put in my head why he was on the ground lying down all covered in his feces and stuff like that. Stink stink. They even said, put on two masks for that, nobody wants to go into the cellblock. We, me and my ma, we lift up brother, we went to buy soap, I didn't expect to that extent. And we said why didn't you tell us? You know us, why didn't you tell us?"

"We get the soap, we bathe my brother, but my brother couldn't move, he can't get up. They ended up calling the ambulance, ambulance came for my brother. All of my brother's hands were cold and grey. His eyes were sunken, his eyes were thick with matter. That's how we found my brother, and we thought police was supposed to keep an eye on him, nobody cares."

They noticed the injuries on him and called the ambulance - but the stark reality hit them that if they hadn't visited that night, he might have died in that cell.

Rosalina Teul, Sister of Deceased
"We call the ambulance, from there we come here. When we came here, we notice the sheet that he was lying on was bloody. When my ma check his head, he had a big patch on his head. Police didn't tell us he burst his head or why they didn't tell us at the beginning, why. He had about six stitches if I'm not mistaken in his head. Nobody told us that. His face was bruised, his leg, he couldn't get up."

"Nobody cared, nobody told us anything, if we didn't go, we wouldn't have encountered my brother."

Teul says no matter what her brother did in the past, he didn't deserve the death he got.

Rosalina Teul, Sister of Deceased
"I know my brother was a troublemaker but my brother didn't touch anybody for no reason. I can't say he's innocent, only God knows, only God can judge. But I know my brother, he was a respectful young man, he didn't touch anybody. He wasn't drinking, they can't say he was drunk, he wasn't drinking."

And now, the Teul family is starting the difficult grieving process, but after they bury Cal, they say they will be taking legal action.

Cal left behind a 5 year old son.

We did reach out to the Commissioner of Police Chester Williams for comment. He is on duty leave - but referred us to the acting Commissioner, Bart Jones. Up to news time we had not gotten his comment.