Printer's police cell death riddle

He was a proud new father on his way home from a Christmas works do. But within hours, Mark Read died alone in a police cell.

Exactly what happened to the perfectly respectable 39-year-old, who was known to everyone as  Graeme,  appears to be a mystery that so far his shocked family and friends have yet to get to the bottom of.

With more questions than answers as an Independent Police Complaints Commission steps up its investigations this week, his grieving relatives said the not knowing why he died, and the inquiries into his death, are making the New Year even more traumatic.

This week, his partner Becky, from Frome in Somerset, spoke of her loss. Six weeks before Christmas she had given birth to the couple's first child, a daughter named Mia. She was looking forward their first Christmas with their new arrival on the afternoon – the day before Christmas Eve – of Graeme's works party.

The do thrown by his colleagues at Concept Publishing in Bath was an enjoyable affair, but nothing untoward happened. At around 6pm, Graeme, who also had a 12-year-old son from a previous relationship, called his father Brian at his home in Bowerhill, Melksham, in good spirits, describing "one of the best ever" Christmas parties and explaining he was on his way back home to Frome.

What happened then is being carefully pieced together by the IPCC. They said yesterday they were even examining CCTV footage taken in the streets of Bath, in a bid to work out the sequence of events.

It appears that Graeme didn't get as far as either the bus or train station. Bath police, who have revealed little of the events of that night, after being restricted from doing so by the IPCC investigation, said officers found Graeme at 7pm in Wells Road and arrested him "for his own safety".

He was then taken to the cells at Bath police station and left. It was a busy evening – the night before Christmas Eve, with a Friday night feel to festivities as many offices and workplaces closed down for the holiday period.

At some point that evening, someone in the custody unit checked up on Graeme and found him "unresponsive". He was taken to Bath's Royal United Hospital, but pronounced dead.

Deaths in police custody are thankfully rare, and normally involve those who flirt with life and death on the edge of society: drug addicts, alcoholics or perhaps suicidal people or those with mental health problems – not printers trying to get home from their office Christmas party.

For Becky Williams, the not knowing is the worst. "He was a loving and supportive partner and a committed and dedicated father," she said. "He was really happy about being a father again and we were just looking forward to spending some time together at Christmas as a family.

"The investigation is tough for us but this situation does need looking into," she added.

For his parents, Brian and June, a lack of information has made their grieving process harder. They were in a state of limbo because of the mystery. "We are getting nowhere with the police at the moment and no one can tell us anything because of the investigation," Mr Read, 66, said last week.

Graeme's bosses and work colleagues were equally stunned. Sally Thomson said everyone at the family-run firm was devastated. At the Christmas party, all seemed fine. "He was so happy and was so excited to be getting back to Becky and his new baby," she said.

"It was a lunchtime do, just nice food, laughter and everyone was having a good time. He was a perfectionist, diligent and irreplaceable – not only in the way he conducted himself at work, but he was also a true gentleman," she added.

Avon and Somerset police said it could not comment as the death was the subject of an IPCC investigation, which it was co-operating fully with. A spokesman for the IPCC said its investigations were "progressing". "We have taken a number of actions including collecting CCTV footage and witness statements," he added.