TEOH'S INQUEST DAY 17 - Taken from TheStarOnline

Published: Tuesday September 8, 2009 MYT 9:05:00 AM
Updated: Tuesday September 8, 2009 MYT 1:06:34 PM

Teoh Inquest (Day 17)

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1pm: Abdul Razak says there is no need to put witness on the stand just to discredit him and ask irrelevant questions as 'this is not a trial.'

12.45pm: Gobind disagrees with Abdul Razak. He says the police report has accusations implicating the witness (Mohd Ashraf).

Gobind questions the 'fear' that the MACC has regarding the matter. "Why the fear? If you haven't done anything wrong, then say you didn't do anything wrong."

Gobind insists that Mohd Ashraf would have the chance to counter the allegations if he is allowed to take the stand.

Abdul Razak says Gobind cannot implicate Mohd Ashraf because after viewing the report, Mohd Ashraf's name was not mentioned in the report.

Gobind says the report stated 'several MACC officers' and Mohd Ashraf is a MACC officer.

Lawyer Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, for the Selangor government, supports Gobind's argument, saying Mohd Ashraf works for the MACC at the time the report was lodged.

12.35pm: Court resumes with Abdul Razak saying that the police report is irrelevant to the inquest for a few reasons. One is that the person who lodged the report on Sept 11, 2008 is a suspect while Teoh was a witness.

11.50am: Lawyer Tan Hock Chuan (representing the Attorney-General's Chamber) suggests that police report Gobind Singh Deo mentioned on Aug 28 (relating to abuse and torture by MACC officers) be given to Datuk Abdul Razak Musa, the lawyer for MACC. Gobind agrees.

Court takes a short break for parties to view the report.

11.24am: 19th witness MACC officer Mohd Ashraf Mohd Yunus, 25, recalled to the stand for the second time.

Executive councillor Ronnie Liu walks in and sits at the front row of the public gallery.

SHAH ALAM: The inquest into the death of political aide Teoh Beng Hock will resume at 11am Tuesday after a week’s hiatus.

The proceedings are expected to be explosive given that the lawyer holding a watching brief for Teoh’s family, Gobind Singh Deo, has been allowed to bring in a “mystery witness” to testify against the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

Teoh, who was the political secretary to Selangor executive councillor Ean Yong Hian Wah, was summoned to the state MACC office at the 14th floor of Plaza Masalam in Shah Alam to be quizzed over the alleged irregular disbursement of state funds on July 15.

He was found dead at the building’s 5th floor service corridor the next day.

An inquest had been ordered to probe his death.

The mystery witness had lodged police reports against several Selangor MACC officers alleging that they had brutalised him when he had been hauled up for questioning.

It is believed some of the MACC officers mentioned in the police report were also being called as witnesses in the Teoh inquest.

According to sources, the witness would only be brought in after all the MACC officers involved in Teoh’s case have been grilled.

Coroner Azmil Muntapha Abas had adjourned the proceedings to Tuesday on Aug 28 to give time for the MACC officers to seek legal counsel.

He had also informed the MACC officer who had testified on Aug 28, Mohd Ashraf Mohd Yunus, that he need not answer any questions that he feels would implicate him.

Malek Imtiaz Sarwar is heading the legal team holding a watching brief for the state whilst counsel Tan Hock Chuan and DPP Mohd Abazafree Mohd Abbas are assisting Azmil Muntapha.

Datuk Abdul Razak Musa is holding a watching brief for the MACC.