Kugan's death: Investigate police 'cover-up'

Rights groups have demanded action against rogue police after a fresh autopsy revealed a man had died in police custody because of severe beating.

MCPX

A second post mortem examination on 22-year-old suspected car thief A Kugan, released on Tuesday, showed he died while being interrogated on Jan 20 from injuries consistent with being beaten. There were also a number of burn marks on his body.

The second autopsy contradicted the first, which found that Kugan died from fluid in his lungs

The Bar Council said that the new autopsy raised several serious questions including “the integrity of the police force and the independence of the pathologist who conducted the initial autopsy”.

“The fact that the results of the second autopsy differ so extensively from that of the first smacks of an apparent attempt to cover up and protect members of the police force who were in charge of A Kugan during the period of detention,” said council’s vice-president K Ragunath (right).

The Bar Council, which represents the country’s 13,000 lawyers, also urged its professional counterpart, the Malaysian Medical Council to launch an investigation in the possible misconduct by Dr Abdul Karim, who had carried out the flawed first autopsy.

Ragunath slammed Selangor police chief Khalid Abu Bakar (left in photo) for releasing “unconfirmed and potentially malicious information” on Kugan’s alleged wrongdoing.

“This information, which was released to the public, only serves to cloud and divert attention away from the brutal manner of Kugan’s death in the hands of police officers who are suppose to uphold the rule of law,” he said.

“Although Kugan had been arrested on suspicion of having committed a crime, he was nonetheless entitled to the full protection of the police force pending a proper investigation and any consequential court proceedings.

“The police force must protect the rights of suspects, and not use the fact that they are apparently guilty as an excuse for any mistreatment.”

Ragunath said that the alleged cover-up by the police would not have been exposed without the “dogged determination” of Kugan’s family and activists.

MCA 'outraged and horrified'

MCA, the second largest party within the ruling coalition, said it was "outraged and horrified" by the incident.

"It is not up to the police to act as prosecutor, judge and executioner," MCA spokesman Wong Nai Chee (left) said in a statement.

"The police force should reveal the results of their internal investigations and take the necessary action against their personnel," he added.

Eleven police officers allegedly involved in the case have been transferred to desk duties.

Rights group Voice of the Malaysian People (Suaram) condemned the incident, saying Kugan's case was not isolated. It said there were 85 deaths in police custody between 2003 and 2007.

"(It) severely undermines the credibility of the police and other enforcement officers in detention centres," Suaram coordinator Tan Moon Hui said in a statement.

But Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar, who oversees the police, hit out at critics who he said were taking political advantage of the situation, state news agency Bernama reported.

"This case has criminal implications and... has nothing to do with politics," Syed Hamid said yesterday.

The Attorney-General’s Chambers will make a decision by the end of this month on whether there is sufficient evidence to charge the police officers over the Kugan's death after having examined the two autopsy reports.

Kugan's death sparked an uproar among the Indian community, with more than 1,000 people attending his funeral.

Ethnic Indians, the majority of whom are descendants of labourers, were brought to Malaysia by British colonial rulers in the 1800s. They have complained they are marginalised in terms of education, wealth and opportunities.