Charles Morais’s lawyer hits out at Khalid over ‘coward’ remark

Charles Morais, the brother of murdered deputy public prosecutor Anthony Kevin Morais, has been labelled a coward by Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar for leaving the country after releasing an 18-page statutory declaration linking Kevin’s murder to a charge sheet. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, November 28, 2015. 

Charles Morais's lawyer has hit out at Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar for calling his client a coward, saying he is not on the run as claimed by the inspector-general of police (IGP).

Lawyer Americk Sidhu told The Malaysian Insider he emailed a copy of the statutory declaration to the police yesterday for them to know its contents.

“Just read the first paragraph of the declaration and the IGP will get Charles's address in the USA. He need only send his officers there to record a statement,: he said.
  
He added that a special task force should be set up to investigate the contents of the declaration released by the brother of murdered deputy public prosecutor Anthony Kevin Morais.

Americk said the declaration was intended to reopen investigations on everything that Charles had alleged.

“It if is false, then decide what to do next. Don't jump the gun before completing investigations,” he said.

He said Charles was not stupid to hang around after knowing what happened to P. Balasubramaniam, a private investigator and key witness in the murder trial of Mongolian woman Altantuya Shaariibuu.
 
Balasubramaniman affirmed his first statutory declartion on July 3, 2008, which implicated Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and several others in Altantuya's murder in 2006.

The next day, Balasubramaniam was coerced to sign a second declaration and retract the first sworn statement.
  
He and his family left the country and returned in 2013 but Balasubramaniam died of a heart attack soon after.

Americk said Charles had to return after being in Malaysia because he had a business to run.

“Anyway, there was no point hanging around after the second post-mortem on Kevin was scuttled by another brother (Richard),” he said.

Khalid earlier today said that police were tracking down Charles, as he was under investigation for withholding information and attempting to commit sabotage.

Charles left for Singapore early Thursday morning, after releasing the 18-page declaration in which he alleged that Kevin's murder was linked to a charge sheet he was preparing.

“He (Charles) is a very irresponsible man. After he gave his press conference at his lawyer's office, he immediately left Malaysia through Johor Baru, and we are currently tracing where he is right now.”

Khalid said police opened an investigation under Section 202 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC) for withholding information and under 124L Penal Code.

“He makes an accusation and then he runs away. Coward. What kind of human is this,” Khalid said today at a press conference.

Americk said the police could classify the case under any provision but “as far as I am concerned my client has committed no wrong”.

The lawyer said it was unfair of Khalid to label his client as a “coward”.

“The IGP is also susceptible to a defamation suit for making such an allegation,” he added.

On Wednesday, Charles told a press conference that Kevin confided in him that he was preparing a charge sheet against a “high-ranking government official” while he was in the Attorney-General's Chambers.

Charles also alleged that his brother, Richard, was in cahoots with “someone”, which was why Richard claimed Kevin's remains from the mortuary.

He also revealed that he was in possession of a memory stick Kevin sent him by courier before he died.

“The content of this pen drive clearly and unequivocally reveals the investigations Kevin had been tasked with just before his untimely death which implicates certain personalities who currently walk the corridors of power in Malaysia,” Charles said.

Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali dismissed the contents of the statutory declaration.

Six men have been charged with Kevin's murder while pathologist Dr R. Kunasegaran has been charged with abetment.

Kevin's remains was found in a cement-filled steel drum in a swamp in Taman Subang Mewah in USJ 1, Subang Jaya, 12 days after his abduction on September 4.

- TMI