Nation

Home Ministry assures investigations ongoing into Pastor Koh, Amri disappearances

KUALA LUMPUR: The Home Ministry has given its assurance that investigations into the disappearances of Pastor Raymond Koh and activist Amri Che Mat are still ongoing.

Its minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution said efforts to locate the victims and hold those responsible are being conducted transparently and will continue until justice is served for the individuals and their families.

"The investigation by the police into the cases of Pastor Raymond and Amri Che Mat is still ongoing.

"As such, I do not intend to comment further on this matter to avoid interfering with the investigation.

"However, I assure you that the police's investigation to locate the victims and hold those responsible is being conducted transparently and will not cease in order to provide justice for the individuals and their families," he said in a written parliamentary reply.

He was responding to a question from Lim Guan Eng (PH-Bagan) who asked the findings of the investigation into the disappearance of Amri Che Mat and Pastor Raymond Koh from 2016 to 2017, who remain untraceable.

He had also asked the progress of the reopened investigation into the case of the late Teoh Beng Hock, who died within the premises of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission headquarters in Selangor.

On Teoh, Saifuddin said the police had reopened the investigation file on Teoh under Section 342 of the Penal Code for wrongful confinement.

He said the investigation file was submitted to the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC), but the AGC returned it to the police on Aug 6 for further investigation.

"As this matter is still under investigation, I do not intend to comment further on this case to avoid interfering with the investigation," he said.

On Feb 13, 2017, Pastor Raymond Koh left home and has not been seen since.

Amri, who is the founder of a non-governmental organisation, went missing after leaving his home in Kangar at 11.30pm on Nov 24, 2016.

His vehicle was found abandoned at a construction site at Bukit Chabang in Kangar.

In 2019, the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) ruled that both Amri and Koh were victims of enforced disappearance perpetrated by members of the Special Branch from Bukit Aman.

Following this finding, Koh's wife, Susanna Liew, 67, filed a civil suit against the police and government, while Amri's wife, Norhayati Mohd Ariffin, initiated a separate lawsuit seeking the same information about her husband's fate.

Most Popular
Related Article
Says Stories