KUALA LUMPUR: The family of Dutch model Ivana Smit has welcomed the High Court’s order to reopen the investigation into her death, nearly eight years after the tragic incident.
In a statement released through the family’s lawyer, Datuk Sankara Nair, Smit’s uncle Fred Agenjo Weinhold said the family was “very content” with the judge’s decision that held four defendants liable over the negligence linked to the investigation.
“The money awarded is of no consequence. What is far more important is that we have received acknowledgement from Malaysia that we were not crazy for saying this for almost eight years.
“We won’t get Ivana back, but at least we have the satisfaction of knowing that a new investigation has been ordered and the monsters responsible cannot rest easy,” he said.
Sankara commended the court for issuing exemplary and unprecedented mandamus orders, including the removal of Asst Supt Faizal Abdullah from the investigation, the formal reopening of the case, and a requirement for quarterly progress reports to be submitted to the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC), with the AGC mandated to take appropriate prosecutorial steps.
“These structural and supervisory remedies demonstrate the court’s clear intent to ensure accountability is no longer delayed or denied,” said Sankara.
He also urged the AGC to consider the public interest, the suffering endured by the family and the integrity of the court’s decision before deciding whether to appeal the judgment.
Yesterday, Justice Roz Mawar Rozain awarded RM1.1mil in general, aggravated and exemplary damages to Smit’s mother Christina Carolina Gerarda Johanna Verstappen in her civil suit against the defendants for negligence in handling the investigation into her daughter’s death.
