PETALING JAYA: A group has questioned whether police adhered to their standard operating procedures (SOPs) when they shot dead four suspected armed robbers in Batu Pahat, Johor, yesterday.
Eliminating Deaths & Abuse in Custody Together (EDICT) said people were also becoming sceptical of such actions by the police as their narrative in these kinds of shooting cases seemed to follow a “similar storyline”.
“Why is the police storyline in these shooting cases more or less the same? Is there something they are trying to hide?
“According to police SOPs on shootings, as stated in the Inspector-General of Police’s Standing Orders D222, officers are only allowed to use their gun to prevent an offence from happening or a suspect from running away.”
If the conditions allow it, shots should be directed to their feet, said EDICT.
The group said the same order also states that the discharge of a weapon must be within reasonable grounds.
“Why did the police not shoot at the suspects’ legs first, as stated in their SOPs?
“Is the police response to killing all these suspects seen as reasonable, as stated in the IGP’s standing orders?”
Johor police chief Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay said the incident occurred when a team from the state contingent’s Criminal Investigation Department stopped two cars which were being driven in a suspicious manner.
Upon approaching the cars for inspection, two suspects suddenly acted aggressively and fired a few shots at them and two others attacked the police with a machete and a dagger.
Ayob Khan said the police then fired back at the suspects in self-defence.
EDICT said it was also time for Bukit Aman to give an update on the use of body cameras for policemen on duty, a plan which was supposed to be implemented early this year as announced by home minister Hamzah Zainudin.
It urged the government to immediately implement the use of such body cameras, stating that Hamzah had approved their use on Nov 18 last year.
EDICT also urged the police to reveal the camera footage to the public after each shooting incident. - FMT
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