Altantuya Murder Trial: Azhar Concludes Defence
21 January 2009
Shah Alam
Continuing in the High Court trial of the murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu, Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri denied the proposition made by Deputy Public Prosecutor Tun Abd Majid Tun Hamzah that he had shown Chief Inspector Koh Fei Cheow and his team the murder site in Puncak Alam where Altantuya was allegedly shot and blown up.
Instead, Azilah told the court that Koh and two other police officers had brought him to the murder scene. Although he admitted to having spotted some traces of a fire there, he told Tun Majid that he did not see any bone fragments at all.
Later, when Tun Majid showed Azilah several crime scene photographs which were tendered by the prosecution, the latter looked puzzled and said they did not resemble the scene where he was taken to.
The High Court judge Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin also questioned Azilah on the point that there were closed-circuit television cameras (CCTVs) operating at the Hotel Malaya where Altantuya was staying. Azilah said he did not know of such CCTVs until he and Azhar entered the hotel.
Azilah’s lawyer, Datuk Hazman Ahmad then announced that Azilah has finished giving his testimony and there would not be any other defence witnesses to be called.
32-year-old Azilah and 37-year-old Azhar, both members of the Special Action Squad, are charged with murdering 28-year-old Altantuya Shaariibuu, at Mukim Bukit Raja, Selangor. 47-year-old political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda was acquitted last October of abetting them.
Kamarul Hisham Kamaruddin, Azhar’s lawyer, caused a small stir in court when he made a request to prepare a written statement for Azhar, who will be testifying next. He also requested for the prosecution to hand over DSP Musa Safri’s police statement and the categories of short messages that were previously not examined in court to prepare for his client’s defence.
The Star Online – I had no reason to kill her, says Azilah
<URL:http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/1/21/courts/3077898&sec=courts>
New Straits Times Online – Altantuya Murder Trial: Azilah: I did not see any bones at crime scene
<URL:http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Wednesday/National/2458980/Article/index_html>
New Straits Times Online – Altantuya Murder Trial: `Razak said she was Chinese’
<URL:http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Wednesday/National/2458999/Article/index_html>
MCW – Altantuya Murder Trial: Azhar Denies Being at Murder Scene
<URL:http://malaysiacrimewatch.lokety.com/altantuya-murder-trial-azhar-denies-being-at-murder-scene/>
Technorati Tags: malaysia crime, malaysia, crime, shah alam, murder, trial, death, altantuya, shaariibuu, altantuya shaariibuu, abdul razak baginda, baginda, azilah hadri, sirul azhar
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