Police Shooting Lawyer Wants Malacca Top Cop To Be Put On Leave

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A lawyer representing the families of three men killed in a police shooting in Durian Tunggal, Malacca, has urged the authorities to place state police chief Dzulkhairi Mukhtar on garden leave immediately.
At a press conference in Petaling Jaya today, lawyer Rajesh Nagarajan said the call was made based on Dzulkhairi’s “completely false and illogical” claims that M Jayashree, the wife of one of the victims, had an extensive criminal record.
“Based on the attack against the victim’s wife, we demand that the IGP and home minister immediately put the Malacca police chief on garden leave.
“Alternatively, they should transfer him to another state where he will not interfere with the investigation,” said the lawyer.
Describing Dzulkhairi’s remarks as a form of “character assassination” against Jayashree, Rajesh clarified that she had only previously given police statements to assist with investigations and had never been convicted.
Malacca police chief Dzulkhairi Mukhtar“A criminal record is only when you have been charged in court, and the judge has found you guilty… but if you give statements to the police, that is not considered a criminal record. So this is complete falsification, and it has completely diverted this entire issue into something completely unacceptable.
“If what he (Dzulkhairi) is saying is true, then he should show us which courts and which sections she had previously been convicted (for),” he stressed.
Last week, Dzulkhairi said Jayashree had 10 prior criminal records, including for armed robbery and attempted murder, while her father also had a criminal past and is wanted in connection with a robbery case.
He also claimed that Jayashree, who described herself as the wife of one of the victims, was not legally married to the man, and that the victim instead had another wife in Johor.
In response, Rajesh also criticised the remarks as an unnecessary disclosure of personal information. He also clarified that the victim and his wife had been married through a religious ceremony.
“Why is the Malacca police chief investigating this issue? Whether she is married to him legally or traditionally at the temple, how is this relevant? How is her marital status relevant to the police case?” he said.
Bukit Aman impartiality
Rajesh also expressed scepticism towards Bukit Aman’s impartiality in investigating the case, and further accused Dzulkhairi of interfering in the investigation.
Lawyer Rajesh Nagarajan“We find it hard to believe the Bukit Aman Special Task Force is investigating this case, because all the statements have been coming from the Malacca police chief so far.
“If it is true that Bukit Aman is investigating, then where is the statement from Bukit Aman? Who is the chairperson of the special task force? Why don’t we know his name? Why is it being kept secret? The prime minister has already stated that this investigation must be transparent,” he stressed.
His remarks were in response to Bukit Aman’s Dec 3 announcement that it had established a team to investigate the case, including the police reports lodged by the victims’ family members.
Rajesh said they have not received any updates from the special task force, and that the police have not classified under which section this case is being investigated.
“Has the investigation even been classified under Section 302 (of the Penal Code for murder)? If it hasn’t even been classified, then what are they investigating? Why is it so murky? Is it because it has been perpetrated by the police?
“No matter who does anything wrong, they must still be held to account,” he stressed.
PM wants transparent probe
On Dec 5, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said he had instructed Inspector-General of Police Khalid Ismail to conduct a transparent probe into the case.
Anwar had also reportedly asked the IGP to submit a detailed report on the incident to Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
On Nov 24, the police shot and killed the men, aged between 24 and 29, after one of them allegedly used a machete to attack a police officer in an oil palm plantation in Durian Tunggal.
Dzulkhairi had defended his team’s actions, alleging that the incident caused a corporal, in his early 30s, to suffer severe injuries to his left arm.
However, the families’ lawyers rejected the police’s version of events, with Rajesh urging that the police officers who fatally shot the trio be charged with murder. - Mkini

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