Seeking the truth over shootings

Bukit Aman task force to determine if latest killings of suspected criminals were extrajudicial executions or made in self-defence.

IT’S been two weeks since a special task force from Bukit Aman took over the probe into the fatal shooting of three men in Durian Tunggal, Melaka, the outcome of which would be crucial for police credibility.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail has given his assurance that the investigation would be thorough, ­covering the policemen involved, family members of the dead and also the audio recording of a telephone conversation that allegedly impugns the police narrative.

The official story, according to Melaka police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Dzulkhairi Mukhtar, is that the three alleged criminals were shot dead after one of them attacked a policeman with a machete at an oil palm plantation in Durian Tunggal.

He said the men, one of whom had 39 cases on his criminal record, were believed to be on their way to a robbery when they were confronted by the police.

The CPO also stated that the trio had been operating since early last year and were linked to 20 cases in the state, and one each in Negri Sembilan and Selangor, with losses amounting to RM1.35mil.

On Dec 3, Federal CID director Datuk M. Kumar announced that the task force had taken over the probe, which was previously investigated by Melaka police.

The team has so far recorded statements of the family members of the deceased and from four medical officers.

The investigators also have a copy of a chilling 13-minute 53-second audio recording, ­capturing the moments leading up to the deaths.

Yesterday, the Attorney-General re-classified the case as murder.

Lawyers acting for the families of the dead have claimed that the evidence suggests extrajudicial “execution-style” killings.

In a new twist, DC Dzulkhairi said the woman who recorded the audio clip of the incident had made a false claim of being the wife of one of the dead men.

He said she was actually his live-in partner for three years, adding she also had 10 cases on her record since 2012.

DC Dzulkhairi also divulged that the woman’s father had a record of 24 cases, including vehicle theft, robbery, and murder.

This led to Rajesh Nagarajan, one of the lawyers representing the families of the three men, into responding that the marital status or previous criminal records of people linked to the case had “no relevance to the investigation”.

MPs from opposition coalition Perikatan Nasional have also questioned the Melaka CPO’s exposure of personal and family information of witnesses in the case.

“Such information may be perceived as attempts to shape public opinion prematurely.

“Public statements that deliberately disclose information, including personal and family histories or portraying witnesses negatively, can create prejudice against individuals linked to a case while investigations are still ongoing,” Kota Baru MP Takiyuddin Hassan, who is Perikatan’s chief whip in Parliament, said in a statement released on Sunday.

Takiyuddin, who is a lawyer, highlighted that any loss of life during a police operation was a serious matter that demanded transparency, strict adherence to standard operating procedures, and the highest level of accountability.

“The findings from the investigation into the trio’s killing must be based on facts, lawful ­processes and unquestionable professional standards.

“They must also be free from bias or selective information to ensure that public confidence in law enforcement agencies is ­preserved.”

The investigation by a special task force is a positive move, given the country’s recurring number of matching cases dating back to decades.

Sixteen years ago, in a column titled “Shooting with the same script”, I raised the question on whether there was a “shoot to kill” policy against criminals instead of arresting them.

Then CID director Datuk Mohd Bakri Mohd Zinin denied it emphatically.

He said that in all the cases, police had been fired at first, stressing that when officers used their guns, they did not aim to kill but only to stop the threat of deadly force.

“It is clearly within the right of the police to act in self-defence and protect the lives of innocent bystanders,” he said.

As then and now, no one in their right minds would question the powers of the police in doing their duties to protect innocent people from dangerous criminals.

But when the narrative describing each deadly shootout is absurdly similar over the years, questions of plausibility arise, along with suspicions and scepticism.

This is the standard story: The cops either come across or are tipped off about wanted criminals “behaving suspiciously” in a car.

The suspects do not stop when ordered to do so. They open fire first or get out of the vehicle and attack the policemen, after which all are shot dead.

With dead men unable to tell tales and cops not using body-worn cameras during shootings, the public is left with accepting the police depictions of who the suspects were and how it happened.

The Durian Tunggal shooting case, however, appears to have stymied the typical takes with the recovery of the audio recording, which allegedly contradicts the police account.

The last time the police version was disputed was on May 31, 2022, in the Shah Alam Coroners Court during the inquiry into the shooting of three suspected car thieves in Rawang three years earlier.

Coroner Rasyihah Ghazali highlighted the abuse of police power in the killings of G. Thavaselvan, 31, S. Mahendran, 23, and Sri Lankan national J. Vijayaratnam, 40, who died of gunshot wounds on their head and chest.

“The shots were not fired in self-defence. There was abuse of power and criminal elements by police in the deaths of the men,” she ruled.

Three years later, it is still not known if any action was taken against the police officers involved.

Media consultant M. Veera Pandiyan likes this observation by Aristotle: “At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst.” The views expressed here are the writer’s own.