Five serving and former Warwickshire Police officers are set to face misconduct proceedings after the death of a man was restrained by police.

Darren Cumberbatch died in 2017 of multiple organ failure after an incident at a Nuneaton probation hostel.

The incident, on 10 July that year, started at the hostel in Edward Street and continued at the George Eliot Hospital, where Mr Cumberbatch, aged 32, died nine days later.

A coroner's inquest in 2019 found police used "excessive" and "probably avoidable" force in restraining him.

Mr Cumberbatch was punch 15 times and sprayed with PAVA Spray in a confined toilet area.

An Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) reinvestigation of police contact with Mr Cumberbatch before his death has determined four officers will face a gross misconduct hearing and a fifth will face a misconduct meeting.

At the inquest, the jury also concluded that police restraint contributed to his death, that there were "serious failings" by attending police officers and that some of the force used "may have been excessive" and "probably avoidable."

They determined that police restraint on Mr Cumberbatch at the hospital was reasonable.

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Following representations by Mr Cumberbatch's family and "careful consideration" of new evidence at the inquest, which included accounts from the officers and other witnesses, the IOPC decided in July 2022 that there should be a reinvestigation of police use of force at the hostel.

The IOPC also examined to what extent officers considered that he may have been "medically vulnerable."

In August 2025 the investigation concluded that four constables had a case to answer for gross misconduct in relation to alleged breaches of the police standards of professional behaviour for use of force, and duties and responsibilities, for failing to risk assess the situation or treat it as a medical emergency. Two of the four are no longer serving police officers.

A fifth constable who was not involved in using force against Mr Cumberbatch, should face a misconduct meeting for alleged breaches in relation to duties and responsibilities. This concerns the level of communication and planning with colleagues before the decision was made to enter and remove Mr Cumberbatch from the toilet block.

IOPC Director Emily Barry said: "Our thoughts remain with the family and friends of Mr Cumberbatch and all those affected by his death. These investigations have taken a long time to reach conclusion and we do not underestimate the impact this will have had on them and the officers involved, for which we are sorry. Since this investigation started, we have transformed our processes to improve the quality and timeliness of our investigations.

"It was important, however, that the circumstances surrounding Mr Cumberbatch's death were thoroughly examined. Following our reinvestigation we determined that two serving officers and two former officers have cases to answer for gross misconduct. We also determined that a fifth officer should attend a misconduct meeting.

"We have now directed Warwickshire Police to arrange the disciplinary proceedings, which they are responsible for organising."