12 years later, family of man gunned down by cops finds relief

The family of a man fatally shot by the police 12 years ago is relieved with the court ruling the incident as a homicide.

According to PSM central committee member Rani Rasiah, who fought the court battle alongside the family of P Kathir Oli, the latter now hopes for the attorney-general (AG) to bring closure to their ordeal.

“The case has not been smooth sailing for them. Kathir’s name and his family’s reputation were badly affected.

“So when the court gave the verdict, the family, especially his brother who was in court, was pleasantly surprised.

“The family hopes that the AG will act on the ruling, but since the verdict was only yesterday (Jan 18), they will give the AG some time before consulting with their lawyer on the next course of action,” Rani (above, second right) told Malaysiakini.

She added that the family hopes that the AG will act on the ruling, which points to blatant abuse of police powers.

Longstanding battle

Yesterday, the Ipoh High Court ruled that Kathir’s death was a homicide and not self-defence, as the police previously claimed.

A police officer gunned down the 31-year-old contractor outside a pub in Ipoh, Perak, on Sept 15, 2011.

P Kathir Oli

Following the incident, then Perak police chief Mohd Shukri Dahlan claimed the police officer who shot the deceased had acted in self-defence as the latter and his three friends had allegedly tried to rob the pub owner with machetes, and tried to attack the personnel involved.

However, PSM said according to the testimony of Ipoh police’s Criminal and Investigation Department officers, no machetes were found at the scene.

Following Kathir’s death, his wife S Janaky, and PSM sought a public inquiry into the death. In December of the same year, Janaky and PSM submitted a memorandum to Suhakam at its headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.

On Sept 20, 2012, Rani said the family was told that there would be no inquest for the fatal shooting and that the deceased’s friend would be charged with causing mischief and hurt to a public servant.

On Jan 10 last year, the coroner delivered an “open verdict” on the death, leading to great disappointment to his family and friends.

This meant that no one was found to have an answer for his death. - Mkini