Govt wants three named in RCI report taken to court,say Nazri

The Government wants the three Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) officers singled out in the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report charged in court, said Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz.

He said the Government had asked for an investigation paper to be opened based on the report's findings that political aide Teoh Beng Hock had been “driven to suicide” during his time at the Selangor MACC office.

The 124-page report had slammed MACC officers Hishamuddin Hashim, Mohd Ashraf Mohd Yunus and Mohd Anuar Ismail for their “aggressive, relentless, oppressive and unscrupulous” interrogation methods.

Nazri said he hoped Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail would look deeply into it once police investigations were concluded.

“There was definitely an offence committed under the Penal Code. We hope there will be enough evidence for the A-G to bring this to court,” he told The Star, stressing, however, that the decision to prosecute was in the hands of the A-G.

Asked if the officers should be suspended from their normal duties, Nazri said this would depend on the investigation procedures.

“We also have to wait for a response from MACC,” he said.

The three officers are still carrying on with their normal duties.

In a statement on Thursday, MACC said it accepted the findings and promised to study the report in totality once it had obtained a copy.

Mohd Ashraf, meanwhile, told The Star that he was on duty as usual but declined to comment on the report.

Hishamuddin, who is currently Negri Sembilan MACC director, could not be reached for comment. His secretary said he was at an appointment.

“He is carrying on with work as usual,” she said, adding that he had attended a morning meeting in the office before heading out.

Attempts to contact the third officer, Mohd Anuar Ismail, were unsuccessful.

MACC corporate communications head Muhammad Salim Sundar said a statement would be issued in due time.

Teoh, 30, the political secretary to Seri Kembangan assemblyman Ean Yong Hian Wah, was found dead on July 16, 2009, on the fifth floor corridor of Plaza Masalam, Shah Alam, Selangor, after giving a statement at the Selangor MACC office on the 14th floor of the same building.

The setting up of the commission was announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on Jan 26 after the Coroner's Court delivered an open verdict. - Star