SHAH ALAM: The High Court here has awarded the family of Mongolian model, Altantuya Shaariibuu, RM5 million, over her death in 2006.
The amount awarded was from the RM100 million suit filed against several individuals linked to her death in 2006.
Judge Datuk Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera, who is now the Court of Appeal judge, also ordered each defendant named in the lawsuit to pay the family RM25,000 in costs and interest of five per cent per annum of the sum of judgment, from the date of the accrual of action until the date of full settlement.
Vazeer, in reading out his judgement this morning said the RM100 million amount sought by the four plaintiffs, namely Altantuya's parents, Dr Shaariibuu Setev and Altantsetseg Sanjaa as well as their two grandsons Mungunshagai Bayarjargal and Altanshagai Munkhtulga against former policemen Azilah Hadri and Sirul Azhar Umar, as well as Abdul Razak Baginda and the Malaysian government for general, severe and exemplary damages is excessive and cannot be justified.
Altantuya's family filed the suit in 2007 against the four defendants.
The Federal Court in January 2015 found Azilah and Sirul guilty of murdering Altantuya and sentenced them to death by hanging.
"Considering the manner in which the deceased was killed, I find that the sum of RM5 million would be fair".
Vazeer ruled that, after scrutinising evidence and testimonies presented throughout the suit hearing, the plaintiff has established that the first and second defendants are clearly liable, for causing the unlawful death of the deceased and that they ought to be held accountable.
He also ruled that clearly, Razak was the link between the two former police officers and the deceased, as the officers did not know the deceased prior to the fateful day, when she was killed on the night of Oct 19, 2006.
"The first defendant (Sirul) had told the third defendant (Razak) that he can 'finish off' the deceased and that he had done it a few times before.
"The third defendant was advised to lodge a police report and have the deceased's deported. He did not take that (into action) but instead sought assistance from a self-professed killer, to deal with the deceased.
"There is no reasonable motive for the first and second defendants to kill the deceased and blow her body into pieces. The only link between them was the third defendant, who wanted the harassment by the deceased to stop".
Vazeer said that the government, as the fourth defendant, are vicariously liable as it was Sirul and Azilah's employer at the material time.
"I find that, on the facts and the law, the fourth defendant as the employer of the first and second defendant is vicariously liable for the murder, which was carried out in the capacity of police officers who were using resources provided by the government".
Altantuya and her cousin and a friend came to Malaysia in mid-October 2006, where the deceased intended to meet Razak, who was said to be in a relationship with her at the time and also to collect payments for translation jobs that she had conducted for him in Paris.
After numerous failed attempts to meet Razak at his office, the deceased began showing up in front of his residence in Damansara Heights. On the night of Oct 19, Altantuya, on her own, went to the residence again, after Razak gave her the green light to meet up.
However, Razak then called Sirul and Azilah to 'deal' with the deceased, and they then took her into Azhar's car to a site in Puncak Alam, here.
They shot her and strapped her body with explosives and blasted her into pieces that night.