An Indigenous woman has died following her arrest, suffering a similar fate to her father 20 years earlier.

Cherdeena Wynne, 26, died at Royal Perth Hospital last Tuesday, five days after she was handcuffed by police and later became unresponsive.

Her father Warren Cooper died in custody in 1999 in a police watch house in Albany. He was also 26.

Ms Wynne died last week.

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NITV talked to Cherdeena’s mother, Shirley Wynne, and grandmother, Jennifer Clayton.

“It’s just not fair … We need to get justice for my granddaughter,” Nanna Jennifer told NITV News.

“When I lost Warren, it was like someone reached into my chest and pulled my heart out.

“We just want to know what happened to Deena and get justice for her.”

READ NITV’S FULL STORY HERE

In a statement, WA Police said they had several interactions with the 26-year-old on the morning of 4 April.

In one interaction, officers were called following reports “that a woman had self-harmed and was collapsed in the street”.

She was taken to hospital but “exited the ambulance and ran away”.

Soon after, officers were “dispatched to assist and located the woman behaving erratically”.

“To prevent injury to herself and emergency services, the woman was restrained by officers with handcuffs,” the statement said.

The woman died at Royal Perth Hospital.

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“Due to her then losing consciousness, police removed the handcuffs and commenced CPR. Once she was stable, she was then conveyed to Royal Perth Hospital … On 9 April 2019, the woman who was identified as Ms Wynne died [there].”

A spokesperson for WA Police did not confirm if the case is being treated as a death in custody or death in police presence.

A Coronial Investigation into the woman’s death has now commenced.

But there are differences in the version of events outlined by the Wynne family and police.

Shirley Wynne told NITV that six police officers entered her home in Perth’s inner suburbs at 3.30am on 4 April looking for a different Indigenous woman.

She claimed they checked her daughter’s identity only after they restrained her in distressing circumstances.

“She shouted to me, ‘mummy I can’t breathe’,” Shirley Wynne said.

Monday marked the 28th anniversary of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.

According to the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement Inc, more than 400 Indigenous people have died in custody since the royal commission ended.

“This is a national disgrace,” it said.

Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14, Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467 and Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800 (for young people aged 5 to 25).

More information about mental health is available at Beyond Blue.