A Sarawakian man has filed a suit against a police officer carrying the rank of inspector for purported unlawful arrest against him, his brother and his nephews.
He named Inspector Wong Shung Ming and also Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador as the defendants in the suit.
Thung Hun Chai, 40, filed the suit via his lawyer Simon Siah at the High Court in Kuching on Tuesday, Feb 9.
Siah told Malaysiakini the three other plaintiffs in the suit are Thung's 50-year old brother Thung Phan Fung; and Phan Fung's children Thung Qi Kai and Thung Qi Zhi, aged 25 and 23, respectively.
Home Affairs Minister Hamzah Zainuddin and the government were also named as defendants in the suit.
According to a statement by Hun Chai, a team of policemen knocked on his door in Kuching on July 26, last year. The officers had asked if he knew someone by the name of Jee Hon Chong, who he identified as the executive director of a company he had several dealings with.
"Just premised on that answer, I was arrested by the police, and I was not immediately informed of the grounds of my arrest," he said.
Hun Chai said it was during the subsequent interrogation that he found out that he was arrested because one Jimmy Lee Shing Choi had filed a report that an unknown person had attacked Jee using a machete (parang).
Hun Chai claimed that there was no mention of his name or his involvement in the said report, and he denied having anything to do with the incident.
Four days later, his brother Phang Fung was also arrested.
On Aug 1, Hun Chai said the magistrate Zubaidah Sharkawi ruled that the police had failed to prove any nexus between him and the alleged incident. He was released on that day.
Nephews arrested
However, on Aug 5, Hun Chai claimed that the police arrested his nephews Qi Kai and Qi Zhi.
"The police had abused their power by simply casting a wide net and arresting and detaining anyone without first doing a proper investigation.
"Such arbitrary use of police power has caused my family and me much damage to our family's name and reputation," he said.
He added that similarly, magistrate Mohd Syukri Mokhtar had released Phang Fung, Qi Kai and Qi Zhi as he found that the trio had no connection with the alleged incident.
Siah said Hun Chai and Jee had a dispute over a sum of money, but the demand letter was only sent to Hun Chai's office when he was in the lock-up.
"The first plaintiff (Hun CHai) had no idea that a letter of demand was sent to him.
"We have not been told why they were arrested and how they were connected to the murder attempt," he said.
Meanwhile, Sarawak police commissioner Aidi Ismail confirmed that the plaintiffs were arrested last year in relation to a case but they were released after there was no evidence linking them to their alleged involvement in the incident. - Mkini
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