LONDON (AP) The death of a former Premier League soccer player who was shot with a Taser by police is being investigated by Britain’s Independent Police Complaints Commission. “He was in a manic state and depressed – out of his mind and ranting”, said Kenroy.
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A spokeswoman for the Coroner for Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin said: “The death of a man has been reported to the coroner following a police incident”.
Police were called to house at around 1.30am this morning amid concerns “for the safety of an individual”.
England’s Football Association said it was “saddened to hear of the passing” of Atkinson, who represented England’s “B” team.
He scored the club’s first ever goal in the Premier League on August 15, 1992, and won the league’s inaugural competition’s goal-of-the-season competition as Villa finished second.
Officers deployed stun guns after being called to an address in Telford, northwest of Birmingham, involving “the safety of an individual”, West Mercia Police said.
Kevin Maxwell, a former detective with Greater Manchester police and founder of Racism Ruins Lives, said: “I’ve not blamed the police, I am simply saying this death and those before it are why Black Lives Matter is important”.
Paramedics said he went into cardiac arrest on his way to hospital.
Paula Quinn claimed Mr Atkinson went down “like a lead balloon” after the weapon was sacked at him. He did very well for me.
The resident claims that Atkinson was Tasered “about four of five times” before being instructed by a fellow officer to “back off”.
“I know Dalian found it hard”, he said.
West Mercia Police is not commenting further on the incident while the IPCC investigation is on-going.
He said police should try to find out the history of the person involved before deciding whether to use electric shock guns.
Home Office statistics show there were 10,329 uses of Tasers by police in England and Wales in 2015, a 2% increase on the previous year.
Atkinson was a Premiership player, having signed with a number of clubs throughout his career, including Aston Villa, Manchester City, Ipswich Town and Sheffield Wednesday.
Atkinson began his career at Ipswich and later played for Sheffield Wednesday and Spanish side Real Sociedad before he moved to Villa.
Only 19% (1,921) were actual discharges – down 3% from the previous year – where the weapon was sacked.
Former managers and team-mates of Atkinson have paid tribute to him and old club Villa will hold a minute’s applause in the 10th minute of their Sky Bet Championship match against Huddersfield tonight.
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Using the hashtag #UmbrellasForDalian, Aston Villa fans on Twitter called for supporters to pay tribute to Atkinson by bringing their umbrellas to the team’s next game on Tuesday night.
