Yusoff did not react when fake guns found in car, police officer tells court

 

Yusoff Rawther is accused of trafficking in 305gm of cannabis and possessing two fake pistols in Kuala Lumpur on Sept 6, 2024. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: 

The Kuala Lumpur High Court heard today that police detained a man behaving suspiciously next to a car parked near a condominium block, before discovering a black bag in the vehicle containing two imitation pistols and drugs wrapped in black plastic.

Wan Muhammad Wan Ali, 37, an inspector from the Kuala Lumpur police headquarters’ intelligence division, said the bag was found under the front passenger seat during an inspection at the spot.

A subsequent check at the headquarters led to the discovery of a compressed lump suspected to be cannabis under the rear passenger seat.

Wan Muhammad, the prosecution’s first witness, was giving evidence at the trial of former research assistant Yusoff Rawther, who is charged with drug trafficking and possession of two imitation pistols.

He said police received a phone call from a man at 5am on Sept 6 who alerted them to weapons in a car and provided its location.

When he arrived with a team at the location near the Senada Kiara Condominium later that morning, he introduced himself as a police officer by showing his police authority card and asked the man for his identity card.

“The details given confirmed that he was Yusoff Rawther,” Bernama quoted him as saying.

When deputy public prosecutor Sabri Othman asked how Yusoff reacted when the guns were found in the vehicle, he replied: “As far as I can remember, he did not show any reaction.”

EWan Muhammad also said Yusoff declined to sign a copy of the disclosure form as proof of the seizure.

He disagreed with a suggestion by Yusoff’s lawyer, Rafique Rashid Ali, that the accused refused to sign the form because he had been framed.

He also dismissed a suggestion that the call police received at 5am was part of an attempt to frame Yusoff on the orders of “higher-ranking individuals”.

Yusoff is accused of trafficking in 305gm of cannabis found in the vehicle he was in in front of the Kuala Lumpur police headquarters surau at 10.15am on Sept 6, 2024.

The charge, framed under Section 39B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, provides for life imprisonment and also whipping of not less than 12 lashes upon conviction.

He is also charged with possessing two fake pistols on the roadside near a condominium on Jalan Bukit Kiara at 9.25am on the same day.

The charge, under Section 36(1) of the Arms Act 1960, carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison, a fine of up to RM5,000, or both, upon conviction.

The trial before Justice Jamil Hussin continues tomorrow. - FMT