MACC men had no power to question Teoh, RCI told
By Boo Su-Lyn, The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, Mar 9 — The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) officers who interrogated Teoh Beng Hock had no authority to do so, the royal panel investigating Teoh’s death heard today.
Bar Council lawyer Edmund Bon claimed today that the MACC internal complaints committee had decided that anti-graft officers — Mohd Ashraf Mohd Yunus and Arman Alias — were not empowered to interview Teoh under the MACC Act 2009.
“The MACC complaints committee, under Section 30(8) [of the MACC Act], says you have no powers to interrogate Teoh,” Bon said during the royal commission of inquiry (RCI) today.
“The person who does the oral interviews has to record the (interviewee’s) statement… in writing,” he added.
Bon was reading excerpts of the MACC internal inquiry report dated April 26, 2010.
Ashraf, a Selangor MACC assistant enforcement officer, said today that Arman had recorded a written statement of the DAP aide during their overnight interrogation on July 15 2009.
He also denied that his actions were illegal.
“Arman had recorded (Teoh’s statement). We gave all the papers to Hairul (Ilham Hamzah),” said Ashraf, referring to his superior who was the Selangor MACC investigation unit head.
