Reveal police probe before calling inquest, says Sarbaini’s family
By Syed Mu’az Syed Putra, The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, June 8 — The controversy surrounding Ahmad Sarbaini Mohamed’s death could prove to be even more embarrassing than the death of a DAP aide almost two years ago, with his family questioning the police’s motives for an inquest.
The senior Customs officer’s family oppose an inquest and demand police reveal their investigation findings. They believe there is a cover-up, a claim which has been equally pursued relentlessly by fugitive blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin.
Raja Petra, in several blog postings on his Malaysia Today website, has claimed that Ahmad Sarbaini’s assets and financial status was checked and cleared by the police.
He’s accused the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) of trying to tarnish Ahmad Sarbaini’s name following his death.
“The family is now confused and do not know what to do…the family is less agreeable for an inquest because it seems like an attempt to delay the case. The family insists that the police reveal the results of the investigation before taking any further action,” said a source close to the family of the deceased.
The source told The Malaysian Insider that Ahmad Sarbaini’s family also did not want the same fate as Teoh Beng Hock’s inquest, with years passing and the case still being investigated via the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI).
“What will happen if there is an inquest? Will there be other witnesses or proof? Reveal this immediately, do not keep quiet like you are hiding something,” the source added.
Sarbaini, 56, was found dead on the badminton court of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) building on Jalan Cochrane on April 6 at about 10.20am, barely two hours after walking in.
His death, which occurred while the Teoh Beng Hock RCI was still ongoing, came as a huge blow to the anti-graft body’s already battered credibility.
Teoh, a DAP aide, fell to his death at the then-Selangor MACC office on July 16, 2009. An 18-month inquest returned an open verdict, ruling out both suicide and homicide in Teoh’s death.
