The student son of a Bradford GP has been found hanged by his shoelaces at the jail where he was remanded, accused of arson.

Danyal Matthew Qazi died on Tuesday night - the day he wrote a letter to his family which gave no warning of what he was about to do.

The close-knit family, who live in Prospect Lane, Birkenshaw, received the letter the morning after hearing about his death at Gloucester Prison.

"There was no inkling in his letter," said Danyal's uncle, Dr Asad Shafi Qazi.

"The letter was very positive and he said he was looking forward to seeing them at the next hearing. It was just normal chit chat."

Danyal's father, Iftikhar-Ud-Din and mother, Annette, who are both doctors, were distraught, said his uncle.

"They have both been asking 'Why, why, why?'"

The 19-year-old was the youngest child of a family of two boys and two girls. He was a first year student at Bath Spa University College, Bath, where he was studying sociology and media communications in the higher education department.

He was arrested and remanded in custody on a charge of arson with intent to endanger life, after rooms at his student accommodation were set alight. His uncle had believed the incident was "a student prank which had got out of hand. He was a lovely young man. There was no harm in him."

A former pupil of Fulneck School near Pudsey, Danyal had been in prison for just over a week after appearing before Bath Magistrates. He was found hanging dead from his own shoelaces in his cell in the prison's healthcare wing on Tuesday at 7.20pm. He had improvised a ligature with the laces and tied it to the window bar of the cell.

Gloucester Prison governor Richard Booty said : "All prisoners when they come to Gloucester are assessed on reception and screened. Part of that process would be a suicide risk rating and he was not assessed as a suicide risk at that point or since that time."

Mr Booty said Danyal had been placed in the health wing because, having been seen by a visiting psychiatrist, it was felt there were "aspects of his behaviour in terms of the way he was conducting himself" which were of concern.

"The psychiatrist thought it would be wise if he was kept in the health wing centre for general observation to see how his behaviour went on."

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