EAIC report on 2014 death in custody enough for IGP to resign, MP claims
(Malay Mail Online) – The recently released report on an inquiry into the 2014 death in police custody of Syed Mohd Azlan Syed Mohamed Nur is incriminating enough to demand the resignation of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), DAP lawmaker Gobind Singh Deo claimed today.
The Puchong MP said it was clear from the recommendations of the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) that police officers involved in Syed Mohd Azlan’s arrest leading to his death were liable for criminal charges.
“This is a shameful report that reflects on PDRM. This kind of report is enough for the Ketua Polis Negara to resign,” he said when debating Budget 2016, referring to the acronym for the police and the IGP’s title in Malay.
“It is clear. If I say it as an opposition member, they would scold me and demand for proof… this is a report by a government agency, the EAIC,” Gobind added.
Last Friday, the EAIC in a statement said that the use of physical violence by police during arrest and questioning was the cause of Syed Mohd Azlan’s death in custody in 2014.
According to the enforcement watchdog, its investigations also found attempts to obscure evidence from the 25-year-old’s interrogation that resulted in 61 separate injuries on various parts of his body.
The police officers involved also engaged in a “serious breach” of standard operating procedures concerning the handling of detainees, material seizure, and the integrity of statements, the EAIC added.
Gobind today claimed that the officers involved in the case should be investigated under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder, and Section 325 of the same law for voluntarily causing grievous hurt.
“The recommendation (by the EAIC) was for the Attorney-General to bring a criminal case on the officer and PDRM members involved in the case… let us see if any action will be taken,” he said.
According to the EAIC’s investigations, Syed Mohd Azlan had been arrested on November 3, 2014 near Pengerang, Johor over possible involvement in an armed altercation involving two groups on September 14 the same year.
He had been detained by a team of 13 police officers and held at the Sungai Rengit police station, where he had been interrogated over the attack.
Syed Mohd Azlan was later transferred to the Kota Tinggi district police headquarters to be remanded, but died while in transit.
A post-mortem determined the cause of death to be blunt force trauma to his chest, while 61 defensive wounds were discovered on his face, torso, and both legs.
