Rights group demands inquiry into fatal police shooting of 5
Published: Mar 31, 2024 11:00 AM
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Updated: 11:00 AM
Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture (Madpet) called for a coroner inquiry into the fatal shooting of five by the police in Putra Heights, Subang Jaya, two days ago.
Madpet spokesperson Charles Hector also urged Suhakam to look into the matter.
“What is shocking is that no one was arrested or injured and arrested. Were they in police uniform and an easily identifiable police car?
“(There were) No body cams or video recordings to reveal the truth. All we have, it seems, are the words of the police officers involved in the killing.
“The truth must be independently verified quickly,” he said in a statement on Madpet’s blog.
Extensive criminal records
Yesterday, Bernama reported Selangor police chief Hussein Omar Khan as saying that five individuals, believed to be part of the “Ninja Van Gang”, were shot dead at 11.30pm the previous night.
He said that the suspects, locals aged between 25 and 30, had extensive criminal records and had been wanted by the police for two years.
The police team spotted a vehicle being driven suspiciously and ordered it to stop for an inspection.
The instruction was ignored and the suspects accelerated the vehicle while firing shots at the police before crashing into the rear of the patrol vehicle, leading to an exchange of gunfire.
Meanwhile, Charles said that the coroner must be assisted by independent investigating officers to discover facts instead of evidence that may have been tampered with.
He cited the case of Syed Mohd Azlan Syed Mohamed Nur’s death in 2014, in which the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission found attempts by the police to obscure and tamper with evidence.
Madpet spokesperson Charles Hector
The police investigation into the incident must also be professional, Charles added, saying that police who commit crimes should be prosecuted.
Questioning media reports of the event, he expressed suspicion of the police being “compromised”.
“There has been no mention of investigating the police officers responsible for the killing, whilst attention has been on the ‘justification’ that the five dead victims are ‘bad people’.
“If they are truly suspects of crimes over the past two years, why were they not arrested and investigated? Why were they not charged in court?
“The presumption of innocence applies until one is convicted by the court, so all five deceased should be considered innocent victims,” he said.- Malaysiakini, 31/3/2024
Media Statement – 31/3/2024
All 5 shot dead by police, none shot and arrested – Immediate inquiry by Coroner needed to establish truth
IPCC and SUHAKAM should also investigate
5 persons, aged between 25 and 30, were extrajudicially killed by Malaysian police, when they allegedly in a car failed to stop when instructed to and responded by firing at the police, and the police returned fire killed all 5 in Putra Heights, Subang Jaya around 11.30pm. (NST,Malay Mail, Star 30/3/2024). What is shocking is that no one was arrested OR injured and arrested. Were they in police uniform and an easily identifiable police car?
No Body Cams or Video recordings to reveal the truth. All we have, it seems, are the words of the police officers involved in the killing. The truth must be independently verified fast.
Coroner Must Immediately Inquire Into The 5 deaths
Coroner must act immediately do an inquiry into the deaths, and establish whether the police are criminally liable or not. The Coroner must immediately step in and independently investigate, and then do a speedy inquest or inquiry into the death.
The Coroner looks into the "cause of death" which ‘include not only the apparent cause of death as ascertainable by inspection or post-mortem examination of the body of the deceased, but also all matters necessary to enable an opinion to be formed as to the manner in which the deceased came by his death and as to whether his death resulted in any way from, or was accelerated by, any unlawful act or omission on the part of any other person.’
Did the police shoot to arrest or kill?
We recall that on 31/5/2023 that the coroner’s court, presided by Coroner Rasyihah Ghazali, for ‘police shooting that resulted in death of 3, ‘…. concluded that there was abuse of power and elements of a criminal nature in the death of three men who were shot at close range by police three years ago. “The shots were not fired in self-defense. There was abuse of power and (actions in the nature of) criminal elements by police in the death of the men,”… She said police witnesses gave evidence that shots were fired at the men from an upright position but post-mortem reports stated that the bullets pierced their bodies at a downward angle. … “The weapons described by the ballistic expert (Izzuwan Marzuki) and the investigating officer (P Visvanathan) were also in conflict,” (FMT, 31/5/2023)
Coroner Must Act Speedily To Prevent Tampering Of Evidence
We are reminded that the police can and may tamper with the evidence. For example, in the death in custody case of Syed Mohd Azlan Syed Mohamed Nur’s who died in 2014, the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) found attempts to obscure evidence from the 25-year-old’s interrogation that resulted in 61 separate injuries on various parts of his body. (Malay Mail, 30/10/2015). The EAIC also stated that there was tampering of evidence by the police including: the cleaning up the incident area before it was visited and examined, disposal of a rubber mat and carpet at the place of arrest which was believed to have blood stains of the deceased, and hiding or removal of eye witnesses to the incident.
Hence, the need for the Coroner to act fast, and not just rely on the police when the killing was caused by fellow police officers. There is a need for investigating officers, not the police, to assist the Coroner discover the truth based on facts, not tampered/tainted evidence.
The National Human Rights Commission (SUHAKAM) should also speedily look into this matter.
IPCC Also Can Commence Investigation On This Matter Of Public Interest
The Independent Police Conduct Commission (IPCC) can also commence investigation as this is a matter of public interest. Section 32 of the Independent Police Conduct Commission Act 2022 Act states ‘the Commission may commence an investigation of misconduct on its own initiative but only if the Commission is satisfied that it is in the public interest to do so whether or not there is a complaint of misconduct relating to it.’ The IPCC have the power to examine persons, obtain documents and other things – but then what they end up doing at the end is CLASSIFICATION and referring the cases to the relevant authority to act on it, and so in this case of police killing, it will most likely end up being send back to the police to further investigate and prosecute.
It is best the IPCC be abolished, and a real Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) be established with the ability to do public inquiry and prosecute police officers that broke the law.
The IPCC, unlike the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) do not have a duty to make public their findings. Section 30(5) of Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission Act 2009 states ‘The Commission shall make public its finding and inform the complainant of its finding and any action taken by the Disciplinary Authority or the Public Prosecutor…’.
Police’s Own Investigation Into The Killing Must Be Professional
Note that the police too must professionally investigate the killing of the 5, and should not hesitate prosecuting police officers that commit crimes.
But Are The Police’s Independence Compromised By What Was Reported In Media?
However, from media reports, the police may be ‘compromised’ and one wonders whether they can independently and professionally investigate this case. About 10 hours after the shooting incident, media reports, possibly from police sources, says that the 5 dead were ‘believed to be involved in more than 50 armed robbery cases around the Klang Valley in the past two years.’ Police believe that at the time of their arrest, all suspects had plans to commit armed robbery. There has been no mention about investigating the police officers responsible for the killing, whilst attention has been on ‘justification’ that the 5 dead victims are ‘bad people’.
If they are truly suspects of crimes over the past 2 years, why were they not arrested sooner and investigated? Why were they not charged in court? Presumption of innocence applies until one is convicted by court, and so all the 5 deceased should be considered innocent victims. Media too need to be careful in their reporting not to paint a negative picture of the deceased 5 simply because the police says so. They may have become suspects only after they have been killed.
MADPET (Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture) urge for immediate investigation by the Coroner, SUHAKAM and even the IPCC into this matter of public interest where the police ended up shooting dead 5 innocent persons, and no one was injured and arrested, or arrested. The police duty is to arrest and investigate, and it is the court that convicts and sentences – thus making all these killings extrajudicial killings.
It is sad that the Media fails to report the Coroners findings of these police shot dead cases, and this is important to determine whether what the police said soon after the shooting was true or fake.
Charles Hector
For and on behalf of MADPET(Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Toture)
See also -
Another Man Shot Dead By Police, Rather Than Being Arrested – Investigate Police Involved For Murder(MADPET) - 18/2/2024
Cops shoot dead five suspected armed robbers in Putra Heights [NSTTV]
SUBANG JAYA: Police shot dead five suspected criminals believed to be involved in more than 50 armed robbery cases around the Klang Valley in the past two years.
The suspects, aged between 25 and 30, were spotted behaving suspiciously by a police team conducting crime prevention patrols on Persiaran Harmoni, Putra Heights, here at 11.30pm last night. They were travelling in a Perodua Axia car.
When instructed to stop for inspection purposes, the suspects, who were also locals, sped off while firing several shots at the police. The police team, comprising officers and members of the Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department (CID), along with CID officers from the Selangor and Kuala Lumpur contingents, attempted to surround the car before the suspects rammed the rear of the police vehicle.
Simultaneously, the suspects continued to fire shots, prompting the police to return fire in self-defence.
Upon inspection, the suspects were found dead at the scene, and the police also discovered and seized two firearms used by the suspects along with other weapons. Sources revealed that all suspects had outstanding warrants issued by the police for armed robbery incidents and past criminal records.
"The suspects were reportedly actively involved in robbing cash from delivery company vans, factories, and homes storing cash and jewellery in areas around Shah Alam, Puchong, Klang, Subang Jaya, Kajang, and Sentul."The suspects were also found to have injured victims who attempted to resist them," the source said.
Police believe that at the time of their arrest, all suspects had plans to commit armed robbery.
A press conference will be held later today.- NST, 30/3/2024
Five armed robbers die in shoot out with cops in Putra Heights
By AUSTIN CAMOENS Nation
Saturday, 30 Mar 2024 9:48 AM MYT
PETALING JAYA: Five armed robbers have been shot dead following a confrontation with police at Putra Heights.
Sources revealed the five were connected to at least 50 robberies in the Klang Valley area.
It was also learnt that two guns were retrieved following the shootout which occurred at around 11.30pm on Friday (March 29).
Selangor police chief Comm Datuk Hussein Omar Khan confirmed the incident.
"We will be calling for a press conference soon where we will divulge more information on this matter," he said when contacted.
It
was learnt that, in the incident, a police team spotted a vehicle being
driven in a suspicious manner and ordered the driver to stop for
inspection.
However, the suspects ignored the instructions, accelerating and firing shots at the police before crashing into the rear of the patrol vehicle, resulting in an exchange of gunfire. - Star, 30/3/2024
Selangor cops say five suspected armed robbers shot dead in Putra Heights
KUALA LUMPUR, March 30 ― Five suspected armed robbery criminals were killed in a shoot-out with the police in Putra Heights, Selangor, last night.
Selangor police chief Datuk Hussein Omar Khan, when contacted by Bernama, confirmed the incident, which was believed to have occurred around 11.30pm.
“We will hold a press conference regarding this incident,” he said briefly.
It is learnt that, in the incident, a police team spotted a vehicle being driven in a suspicious manner and ordered the driver to stop for inspection.
However,
the suspects ignored the instructions, accelerating and firing shots at
the police before crashing into the rear of the patrol vehicle,
resulting in an exchange of gunfire. ― Bernama - Malay Mail, 30/3/2024
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