ST. GEORGES, Grenada — A preliminary inquest into the death of a Toronto man in Grenada and the five police officers accused of beating him has begun.

Grenadan public prosecution director Christopher Nelson said 16 witnesses are expected to testify in the inquest next week, including the wife of victim Oscar Bartholomew.

Prosecutors have alleged police beat Bartholomew to death on Boxing Day after an altercation that began when he bear-hugged a policewoman he mistook for a friend

Five police officers have been charged with manslaughter in the case.

Lawyers for the accused policemen failed in their bid to have the preliminary inquest into Bartholomew's death delayed as part of their request for a coroner's investigation.

Nelson said Friday that two pathologists already determined Bartholomew's cause of death.