Family of men shot dead by police in Rawang demand answers

Left: G Thavaselvan; Right: S Maghendran

The family of two men shot dead by cops in Batu Arang, Rawang in the early hours of Saturday is demanding answers from police on what had transpired and the fate of the wife of one of the deceased who is now missing.

They said they were puzzled with police's statement that the duo (G Thavaselvan and V Janarthanan), who were in-laws, and their friend (S Maghendran) all of whom police shot dead in the incident, were suspected members of a home invasion gang.

According to Jasminder Kaur, 31, her husband G Thavaselvan, 31, had gone out with his sister G Moganambal, 35, and Moganambal's husband V Janarthanan, 40, and Thavaselvan's friend S Maghendran, 23, the night before to dine at a restaurant in Serdang.

Janarthanan is a Sri Lankan citizen who holds a Malaysian permanent resident status and works in the UK.

He, Moganambal and their three children had been living in Portsmouth and arrived here on Aug 27 to visit a sick relative, according to Jasminder.

Jasminder Kaur

Jasminder said they lodged a missing person report on Saturday when the four failed to return home but learned later on Sunday that the three men had been shot dead.

"I want to get a clear picture of what happened to my husband. Where is my sister-in-law and why was my sister's husband murdered? What am I going to tell their kids?"

Jasminder said that it was unacceptable to be told that her sister-in-law's husband was involved in crime here, claiming that the family was well to do in the UK and had only come here for a visit.

"Until we get justice, and get my sister-in-law back, we won't claim their bodies," said Jasminder when met outside Bukit Aman where she and family members had arrived to lodge another police report on her missing sister-in-law.

Left: V Janarthanan; Right: G Moganambal

Jasminder added that the four had left in a Perodua Alza rented by the visiting family while the vehicle that was reportedly involved in a police chase was a Volkswagen Polo.

She said the Alza the four had used when they went out on Friday evening had been found in Serdang, not far from the restaurant they had gone to that night.

Meanwhile, Janarthanan and Moganambal's eldest son, Logantharan, 17, said he could not believe that his dad had been shot dead by police.

"We heard the news that three men had been shot but I didn't believe it as my dad is not like that. And my mom is still missing. We hope the police will find her. Because we want our mom back.

"We have lost our dad, we have no one else. We got our future in the UK," he said.

The family's lawyer Sivahnanthan Ragava, when contacted, said they wanted the inspector-general of police to look into the matter seriously and provide answers on what had happened to the woman.

He also questioned how Janarthanan and Moganambal had become suspects when they had only come here for a visit after six years.

On Saturday, Selangor police chief Noor Azam Jamaludin held a press conference saying that a team of police officers from the state CID's Serious Crime Division together with Gombak district police had shot dead three suspected robbers during a shootout at Jalan Batu Arang at about 5 am that day.

He said at Bandar Country Homes, the men had refused to stop for checks when ordered to by police and a high-speed chase ensued before the suspects' vehicle went out of control and crashed.

According to Noor Azam, shots were then fired towards the police and the police team returned fire, killing all three. Police also seized two semi-automatic pistols and three parang, among other items.

When contacted, Noor Azam said police would investigate the family's claim regarding the missing woman.

He said police would also want to establish her connection with the suspects.