Missing tycoon: Wife offers recording of phone conversations

By Stephanie Sta Maria - Free Malaysia Today

KAPAR: The second wife of missing Indian tycoon A Muthuraja today revealed new evidence that could aid investigations into his disappearance here in Malaysia.

At a press conference here, S Usharani, 24, played two recordings of phone conversations between her and two Malaysians – a lawyer who is the main suspect in the murder of cosmetics millionaire Sosilawati Lawiya and a man claiming to be from Bukit Aman.

According to Usharani, she called the lawyer on Jan 28 when she failed to hear from her husband who had left for Malaysia to meet him 10 days before.

“My husband and the lawyer had plans to open a restaurant in Banting and I believe my husband had invested a large sum of money in the business already,” said Usharani, who maintained her composure throughout the press conference.

“The lawyer had asked him to come to Malaysia for further talks and we had no reason to suspect anything because it was a usual occurrence. He was a family friend and had also visited us in India numerous times. But my husband told me he was only going to be in Malaysia for one day.”

When she reached the lawyer, he told her that he was currently in Kathmandu and assured her that he would investigate her husband's whereabouts when he returned to Malaysia.

“By this time I was already suspicious and took it upon myself to lodge a report at the High Commission of India in Malaysia,” she said.

'He is still alive'

On Feb 2, she received a call from a man named Muru who claimed to be a policeman. He told her that her husband had been arrested on drug charges and offered to release him from custody for a sum of RM1 million. Usharani didn't record that call.

Ten days later, another man who identified himself as ASP Suresh from Bukit Aman, called Usharani to make the same demand. This time Usharani recorded the call.

“They said that they didn't want my husband, only the money,” Usharani recalled. “I made a second report at the High Commission to find out whether these claims were true, but I've not received any response since.”

Usharani, who lodged her first police report on Sept 8, will be turning over this new evidence to Bukit Aman tomorrow morning. While police have confirmed her husband's death, she believes “he is still alive”.

“I will not lose hope until the DNA evidence proves otherwise,” she said. “One of my husband's family members will come to Malaysia soon to provide the police with DNA and blood samples.”

“I believe he has been kidnapped and I beg those who are holding him to please release him because I have been frantic with worry for the past eight months.”

Usharani, who arrived in Malaysia yesterday morning, was accompanied by Kapar MP S Manikavasagam to lodge a second police report in Kuala Langat. She also visited the farm owned by the lawyers.

'Sorry, I don't trust Khalid'

Manikavasagam, meanwhile, lambasted the police over “shocking inaccuracies” in the first police report which stated Usharani's nationality as “Malaysian” and her race as “Malay”.

He also expressed disappointment towards the Selangor chief police officer Khalid Abu Bakar for warning him not to interfere in police investigations.

“We are not here to interfere,” he said. “In fact, we asked police permission to visit the site yesterday. I'm just helping Usharani and will leave the case in the lawyer's hands after this.”

However, Manikavasagam was adamant that the recordings will not be handed over to the Selangor police but Bukit Aman.

“I'm sorry but I don't trust Khalid,” he said. “So I will not be handing over any evidence to him or the Selangor police. Now it looks like I have a problem with two Khalids in Selangor.”

The other Khalid that Manikavasagam was referring to was Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim with whom he didn't see eye-to-eye during the recent sand mining scandal.