PETALING JAYA: The parents-in-law of a Sri Lankan national who was killed in a police shootout in September say they will not attend the inquest into the incident which sparked controversy due to conflicting versions of events from the police and family members.
Lawyer P Uthayakumar, who is representing the family of Janarthanan Vijayaratnam, said Janarthanan’s in-laws had told him it was “no use”.
“If subpoenas are issued for them to appear as witnesses in the inquest, I’m not sure what they will do,” Uthayakumar, who has also voiced doubt over any inquest into the shooting, told FMT.
The shootout took place on Sept 14 after a police patrol ordered the car carrying Janarthanan, his brother-in-law Thavaselvan, and Maghendran Santhirasegaran to pull over at Bandar Country Homes.
According to the police, the men refused to comply, resulting in a 7km chase which saw them firing on the officers. The police returned fire and the three men were killed.
The police said Thavaselvan and Maghendran were wanted members of the 08 gang in Rawang, while UK-based Janarthanan had overstayed his visa.
However, the family disputed the police’s version of events, claiming that Janarthanan’s wife, Moganambal Govindasamy, had also been in the car.
She has since been reported missing, although Selangor police chief Noor Azam Jamaluddin denied that the men had been accompanied by a woman.
Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador later called for an inquest into the shooting.
Uthayakumar said he had been told that Janarthanan and Moganambal’s three children, who are in the UK, are being looked after by welfare officers from Portsmouth City.
“This is a proper civil society,” he added. “They will help anyone regardless of race or religion.”
He said a relative of the family also told him that Interpol had interviewed the children, aged five, 10 and 17, as well as their grandparents.
He said the families of both Janarthanan and Moganambal have been calling him for updates on the case.
“But there are not many answers that we can give,” he said. - FMT
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