The Altantuya murder — a recap

KINIGUIDE | In 2006, Malaysia witnessed its most politically-charged murder case ever following the brutal slaying of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu.

Now, the case is back under the spotlight with former chief inspector Azilah Hadri, who was co-convicted of the murder, accusing ex-premier Najib Abdul Razak of ordering the hit.

This instalment of KiniGuide offers a quick recap of the Altantuya murder trial at the High Court, which involved 84 witnesses and was heard over a record 151 days.

Who is Altantuya?

According to court testimonies, Altantuya, 28, was hired by defence analyst Abdul Razak Baginda as a translator.

In his own testimony, Razak admitted to a romantic relationship with Altantuya in 2004.

In October 2006, Altantuya and her cousin arrived in Malaysia. She was picked up in front of Razak's house on Oct 19, 2006 by police personnel and never seen again.

Three weeks later, some of her remains were found in a forested area near Puncak Alam. It appeared that she had been blown up with explosives.

Who were the suspects?

The police immediately arrested chief inspector Azilah Hadri in Malaysia and corporal Sirul Azhar Umar.

At the time of his arrest, Sirul was in Islamabad, Pakistan as part of then prime minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's security detail.

Following this, the police arrested Razak, a well-connected defence and political analyst known to enjoy close ties with then deputy prime minister Najib Abdul Razak.

Azilah and Sirul were charged on Nov 15, 2006 for murder. Razak was charged for abetting the duo by conspiring with them at his office in Kuala Lumpur.

Curiously, the court granted Razak bail although his alleged offence was non-bailable.

Why was Altantuya in Malaysia?

Court testimonies suggested that Altantuya was in Malaysia to demand US$500,000 (worth about RM1.8 million at the time) from Razak.

Altantuya had lodged a police report hours before the murder took place, wherein she described Razak as her "boyfriend".

She wrote that "if something happened" to her, the police should check with Razak.

Altantuya's entry records with the Immigration Department is still something of a mystery.

What was Azilah's role?

Once Azilah and Sirul were called to enter their defence, they were the only two defence witnesses offered.

Investigators told the court that Azilah led them to the murder scene, detailing where Altantuya was fatally shot and then blown up.

Azilah's testimony, however, suggested that Sirul was the last person with Altantuya.

He testified that he and Sirul had two encounters with Altantuya — at Hotel Malaya in Kuala Lumpur before the incident and again on the night of the incident.

He claimed that Najib's then aide-de-camp Musa Safri had given him a mission to remove Altantuya from Razak's home on the night of the incident.

The duo, accompanied by lance corporal Rohaniza Roslan, picked up Altantuya in front of Razak's house. 

According to Azilah's account, he succeeded in "advising" Altantuya not to harass Razak and then instructed Sirul to return the deceased to her hotel. 

Azilah testified that he then parted ways with Sirul, who drove Altantuya to the hotel in a separate vehicle. Azilah said that was the last he saw of Altantuya and that he had an alibi.

He denied being with Sirul when the murder took place and that there was no motive to kill Altantuya.

What was Sirul's role?

Sirul was the final defence witness. He could not be crossed-examined because his testimony was given from the dock, unlike Azilah.

He testified that he was being made a "scapegoat" in the whole affair and was the victim of planted evidence.

Prior to Sirul's testimony, prosecutors told the court that Altantuya's jewellery and DNA were found on accused's jacket. This evidence went unchallenged.

Sirul's 15-page statement to the court did not offer many details as to what happened that night but he did allude that "the real persons responsible are not in court today to face the consequences of their actions and plans".

His alibi was that he reached home at Kota Damansara, Selangor about 10pm on the night of the incident and left home at midnight for Kampung Baru, Kuala Lumpur for sahur.

What was Musa's role?

The prosecution had claimed that Musa had secured the attendance of Azilah and Sirul at Razak's house on the night that Altantuya disappeared.

He was never called as a prosecution witness.

In January, the police said they have recorded statements from Musa in a fresh probe on the murder.

What happened to Razak?

In 2008, Razak was acquitted without his defence being called.

Prosecutors did not appeal this decision. In 2015, then law minister Nancy Shukri said no appeal was filed due to lack of evidence.

What has Najib got to do with this?

There have been many insinuations about Najib's involvement in the affair. This article will only focus on two recent insinuations that were performed under oath.

On Oct 17, Azilah produced a sworn statement accusing Najib of instructing him to terminate Altantuya while alleging that she was a "foreign spy".

In January, Altantuya's cousin Burmaa Oyunchimeg had told the Shah Alam High Court that she had seen a photograph depicting the deceased with a "deputy prime minister" and Razak in Paris.

What remains unchallenged about Najib's involvement in the affair was his association with Razak and the fact that Azilah and Sirul served as his bodyguards.

Razak's company had landed a lucrative maintenance deal for two French-made submarines which was procured when Najib was defence minister in the early 2000s.

Najib has repeatedly denied ever knowing Altantuya and once took an oath to this effect in a mosque.

In February, Najib had goaded the Pakatan Harapan administration to take action against him for several high-profile murders, including that of Altantuya.

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This instalment of KiniGuide was compiled by ZIKRI KAMARULZAMAN AND ANDREW ONG.