By FMT Staff
KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is hopeful that Thai pathologist Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand will attend and testify in the Teoh Beng Hock inquest on April 20.
The MACC said Pornthip’s testimony would help settle the matter quickly and ensure fairness to all, including Teoh’s family and the commission.
“Pornthip should not worry about her safety because the Malaysian government, including the Home Ministry and the police, have given their assurance to safeguard her throughout her presence at the inquest,” MACC said in a statement today.
On Sunday Pornthip, the director-general of the Bangkok-based Central institute of Forensic Science (CIFS), withdrew from the inquest, citing "political" pressure from the Malaysian government.
Pornthip, whose expert opinion was sought by the Selangor government, was expected to reveal the mysterious circumstances surrounding Teoh's death last July 16.
Teoh, 30, was the political secretary to Selangor executive councillor Ean Yong Hian Wah.
On July 15, he had been summoned to the MACC office on the 14th floor of Plaza Masalam in Shah Alam to be questioned over allegations of irregularities in the state funds. He was, however, found dead the following day on top of the fifth floor adjacent to the building.
Following an appeal by Teoh’s family, the court ordered a second autopsy. Pornthip was involved in the second autopsy.
In her earlier appearance at the inquest, Pornthip had said that Teoh’s death was "80 percent homicide".
Malaysian pathologists, however, had insisted that Teoh could have plunged to his death or could have committed suicide.
On Sunday, Pornthip had said she was informed by the Thai Law Ministry that based on information received from Thailand’s Foreign Ministry, she would be barred from entering Malaysia.
Yesterday, Home Minister Hishamuddin Hussein and Inspector-General of Police Musa Hassan had reassured Pornthip of her safety while in Malaysia during the inquest.
PI Bala urged to return
Meanwhile on another note, the MACC has urged private investigator P Balasubramaniam to come forward and give his statement in regard to the 2006 murder of Mongolian translator Altantuya Shaariibu.
MACC said that it was prepared to meet Balasubramaniam in any Malaysian High Commission abroad.
It added that Balasubramaniam’s statement was important for it to wrap up its investigations.
The commission said that todate it had recorded statements from carpet dealer Deepak Jaikishan and Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s brother Nasim.
Balasubramaniam created controversy on July 3, 2008, when he distributed a sworn deposition in connection with Altantuya’s murder, alleging links between Najib, his close friend Abdul Razak Baginda and the deceased.
The next day, the private investigator retracted his statutory declaration and subsequently left the country with his family.
On Oct 27 last year, in the presence of three prominent lawyers, Balasubramaniam came out of hiding and reaffirmed that his first statutory declaration was true and that he was offered RM5 million to retract it.
In the no-holds-barred interview, he named Deepak -- who is said to be an associate of Rosmah Mansor, the prime minister's wife -- as the person who met him at a Rawang restaurant and made the cash offer.
Balasubramaniam also claimed that he had been offered RM5 million by Nazim to retract the first statutory declaration, a charge which the prime minister rubbished.
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