Meeting to be arranged between Mahathir and Altantuya’s father
(The Sun Daily) – A meeting will be arranged between Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Setev Shaariibuu, the father of murdered Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu.
Bukit Gelugor MP Ramkarpal Singh who is representing Setev, said this follows news that Sirul Azhar Umar who was convicted for the murder of Altantuya, will be extradited back to Malaysia, following a request from Putrajaya.
Ramkarpal said he is in the midst of arranging the official meet-up between the premier and his client pertaining to Altantuya’s murder case.
He said many doubts and confusions over the case will be raised during the meeting while he also hoped to convey the message that a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) should be established to investigate the motive behind the killing.
According to him, Mahathir could advise the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to form the RCI for further investigations to be carried out.
“Setev nonetheless is likely to be here in Malaysia in one or two weeks time as I am on the verge of arranging for him to come over,” he told a press conference.
British daily The Guardian had reported that Australian authorities have approved Malaysia’s request to extradite the former police officer.
Based on the report, the Australian government had agreed to the request after Malaysia had agreed to cover the cost of extradition and had assured that Sirul would be treated fairly upon his return.
“Australia had previously refused the request on grounds that he is facing the death penalty.
Ramkarpal lauded Australia’s decision and said this would be a positive start to the case.
He also urged newly-appointed Attorney-General (AG) Tommy Thomas to reopen the case to ensure justice prevails.
“We want to know who ordered the killing,” he said, and questioned if any high-ranking person was involved.
“This is not the end of the story. It’s only the beginning,” said Ramkarpal, referring to the extradition of Sirul.
Altantuya, 28, was believed to have been shot dead before her body was blown up with explosives at a secondary forest near the Subang Dam in Puncak Alam, Shah Alam, in 2006.
Sirul and his former colleague from the police’s Special Action Unit, Azilah Hadri, were charged with the murder and sentenced to death in 2009 but Sirul has denied carrying out the killing, saying that he was acting on orders from his superiors and was only involved in driving Altantuya to the scene.
