Tahfiz fire: Witness says CCTV footage not edited

A police officer told the High Court today that he did not edit the CCTV footage which captured the movement of two people believed to be the two accused in a fire at a tahfiz centre in Kuala Lumpur.

Ampang Criminal Investigation Department senior investigating officer Saiful Azhar Rahim said he had downloaded onto a pen drive the footage from a CCTV installed at a neighbour's house in Jalan Datuk Keramat. 

The footage is dated Sept 14, 2017, from 12.25am to 7am.

“I handed over the pen drive containing the CCTV footage downloaded from a decoder that I seized to Tay Chew Thwa @ Rico Tay (of the Kuala Lumpur police headquarters) on Sept 19, 2017, at 3pm, for further investigation,” he said.

Saiful Azhar said this during an examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Julia Ibrahim at the trial of two teenagers charged with the murder of 23 occupants of Pusat Tahfiz Darul Quran Ittifaqiyah two years ago.

Julia: While downloading the CCTV footage into the pen drive, did you do any editing?

Saiful Azhar: No.

Earlier, Saiful Azhar – who is attached to the Wangsa Maju Criminal Investigation Department from April 1, 2014 to March 31, 2019 – said he led a team of police personnel to a house in Kampung Datuk Keramat, and confiscated a decoder and a cable on Sept 17, 2017 for further investigation.

The 67th prosecution witness said the confiscated items were then brought to the Wangsa Maju police headquarters before the contents were downloaded into a pen drive.

Two teenage boys, then aged 16, were jointly charged with murdering and causing the death of the 23 residents at the tahfiz centre at Jalan Keramat Hujung, Kampung Datuk Keramat, between 4.15am and 6.45am on Sept 14, 2017.

The two accused, now aged 18, each face 23 counts of murder under Section 302 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 34 of the same law, which provides a mandatory death sentence, upon conviction.

However, Section 97(1) of the Child Act 2001 states that a death sentence shall not be pronounced or recorded against a person convicted of an offence if the child is under the age of 18.

In lieu of the death sentence, as provided under Section 97 (2) of the same law, the court shall order the person to be detained at the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

Section 94 of the same law also empowers the court to order the parents or guardians of the child offender to pay a fine or provide compensation.

The trial before judge Azman Abdullah continues Sept 24.

- Bernama