A 34-year-old murder accused in Jalpaiguri is suspected to have committed suicide on Monday in police custody.

His family members have accused the police of negligence. Senior police officers have said a judicial probe into the incident would be done.

Sources said Kishan Lohar, the deceased, was from Rungamuttee tea estate of the district and was accused of murdering his wife.

He was arrested last Friday by a team of Malbazar police and was sent to police custody for three days.

Early on Monday morning, Lohar was taken to the super-specialty hospital in Malbazar for a health check-up.

He was brought back and put in lock-up again.

Around 9am, as policemen couldn’t find him in lock-up, they went inside the cell and found him hanging in a noose from the ceiling of the adjoining toilet.

They brought Lohar down and rushed him to the hospital where doctors pronounced him dead.

Lohar had torn a portion of the blanket provided to him and had made a noose with it, said sources.

Raju, his brother, alleged that the police were "negligent" regarding his brother.

"We had been to the police station earlier to meet my brother. But the police didn’t let us meet him. We want a complete investigation of his death,” said Raju.

Senior police officers, when contacted, said preliminary investigation pointed at suicide.

“However, according to rules, a judicial inquiry would be conducted. We are also waiting for the post-mortem report to know the exact cause of Lohar's death,” said a police officer.