In explosive twist, wife says Amri nabbed by same cops who took Pastor Koh

Amri Che Mat's wife details what was told to her by a 'Special Branch police informant', according to lawyers representing him in the ongoing Suhakam hearing.

Norhayati Mohd Ariffin, the wife of missing activist Amri Che Mat, says she was told her husband was taken because of ‘Shia’ and ‘forex’.

PETALING JAYA: The wife of missing activist Amri Che Mat today claimed she had been told by a police informer that her husband was taken by a team from Bukit Aman which was also responsible for the disappearance of Pastor Raymond Koh.

Norhayati Mohd Ariffin said the police officer had come to her house in Kangar on the night of May 12, and had shown her and her daughter his IC and police card when asked for proof of identity.

“This police officer, who asked not to be named, told us that he knew who had taken my husband Amri,” she said, and named a top police officer in charge of Bukit Aman Special Branch’s Social Extremism Division (E2), as the person who headed the operation.

“When I asked him why Amri was taken, he alleged it was because of ‘Shia’ and ‘forex’,” she said in a statement.

According to the policeman, Norhayati said, a police team in Perlis had been conducting surveillance on Amri even before his disappearance.

“This team was headed by Special Branch officer ASP Razman Ramli, who allegedly sent this surveillance information to Bukit Aman Special Branch,” she added.

She said the officer also claimed that the team which had taken Amri was the same team which took Koh on Feb 13 last year.

“When I asked him why, he alleged that it was because allegedly Pastor Raymond proselytised Muslims.”

Norhayati said she lodged a police report and recorded a statement on the matter at the Shah Alam district police headquarters yesterday.

She also told the police more details on the other officers mentioned, including the name of the police informer who had spoken to her.

Koh’s abduction last year was caught on CCTV, showing several men in balaclavas using black SUVs to block his car in broad daylight. He has not been seen since.

Police have previously denied responsibility for his disappearance, but arrested a 31-year-old and charged him with kidnapping Koh. The charge meant that Suhakam’s into his disappearance could not be continued.

The inquiry into Amri’s case continues this morning, with Kangar police officer, Inspector Khor Yi Shuen, expected to give his testimony.

The inquiry is also investigating the disappearance of Pastor Joshua Hilmy and his wife, Ruth. The couple were last seen on Nov 30, 2016.

Amri, who co-founded an NGO called Perlis Hope, has been missing since Nov 24, 2016. His wife had previously said that five vehicles had blocked his car before he was whisked away, some 500 metres from their home in Bukit Chabang, Perlis.

Among witnesses summoned to the inquiry was Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin, following his visit to Amri’s house accompanied by police and officers from the state mufti department.

Asri said he had gone to Amri’s house to investigate “complaints” over Amri’s leaning towards Shia Islam, the school of thought labeled as “deviant” by Islamic authorities. But the mufti denied any involvement in Amri’s disappearance. -FMT