PERLIS Special Branch Sgt Shamzaini Mohd Daud will continue his testimony at the Suhakam public inquiry into missing activist Amri Che Mat today.

Amri’s wife Norhayati Ariffin had alleged that the police officer told her at her home in Padang Behor on May 12 that Bukit Aman was involved in her husband’s abduction.

Shamzaini, who will be giving his testimony for the second time, had told the inquiry two weeks ago that he visited Norhayati to ask if he could rent a shop at her place.

He said Norhayati asked if he knew about Amri’s disappearance and whether the police knew about it after he introduced himself as a police officer.

Shamzaini told her he didn’t know anything, which he said had angered her.

Norhayati lodged a police report at Shah Alam district police headquarters on May 14, saying that Shamzaini had told her that Bukit Aman was involved.

Two days after Norhayati had lodged the report, Shamzaini lodged a report in Perlis denying everything she had said.

Amri was allegedly being investigated for spreading Shia teachings.

He went missing on November 24, 2016 and was believed to have been abducted by a group of people in four-wheel drives that were seen surrounding his car in Kg Padang Behor.

Suhakam is conducting a public inquiry into the disappearance of Amri, Pastor Raymond Koh, Pastor Joshua Hilmy and Joshua’s wife, Ruth, to ascertain if they are cases of enforced disappearance.

The Malaysian Insight brings live updates of today’s proceedings.

4.20pm: Inquiry ends. It will resume on August 6. 

4.10pm: Mah asks Shamzaini why he wished to open a workshop at Norhayati’s place. 

Shamzaini says it is because the place is located 1km from town.

Mah asks Shamzaini where else he looked for a suitable place to open a workshop.

Shamzaini says he looked in Kuala Perlis, Berseri and Kangar. 

3.25pm: Razlan asks Shamzaini if it wasn’t a coincidence that the shop he wanted to rent, of all the places in Perlis, belonged to Norhayati.

Shamzaini says no, and that he had surveyed other shops. 

Razlan asks if the reason he went to see Norhayati was not to rent a shop, but to talk about Amri.

Shamzaini says no. 

Razlan says to Shamzaini that he knew about Norhayati before meeting her, which Shamzaini then denies.

2.55pm: Razlan asks if Shamzaini had gotten permission from his superiors to open the shop.

Shamzaini says two of his superiors had given him permission.

Razlan asks if he knew of the Suhakam inquiry into Amri’s disappearance, started in January 2018.

The officer said he didn’t know and had never heard of it.

Razlan then asks him how long he has been in Perlis.

Shamzaini says he has been there since 2011.

The lawyer then questions how he could have been ignorant of Amri’s abduction.

Shamzaini says he had heard about Amri’s disappearance, but he didn’t know the details.

2.30pm: Amri’s family’s lawyer Razlan Hadri asks Shamzaini about the workshop that he wanted to open at Norhayati’s premises, which were being occupied by Parid Audio.

Razlan asks the policeman where his workshop is located.

Shamzaini says it was in Kedah and he wanted to shift it to Perlis, where he is stationed.

The lawyer asks if the shop is registered and if he will find it if he searches for it.

Shamzaini says yes.

1.05pm: Gomez asks Shamzaini if Norhayati had mentioned the names of several senior police officers, including former Special Branch commissioner Awaluddin Jadid.

The lawyer then asks Shamzani if he told Awaluddin about Norhayati’s claims.

The officer says he did not tell Awaluddin because he was not in Perlis.

Gomez then asks Shamzaini if he didn’t think it important to inform Awaluddin, as it was a huge accusation.

The policeman says he didn’t feel the need to tell Awaluddin because he thought the matter has been resolved with Norhayati.

The inquiry takes a break for lunch.

12.45pm: Gomez asks about the meeting that night with Norhayati, which had led her to allege that Shamzaini was involved in Amri’s abduction. 

The lawyer tells Shamzaini that Norhayati said he told her several senior police officers were involved in Amri’s abduction. 

Shamzaini says she was lying and that he did not give her the infomation. 

He says he had told her to make a police report if she had any information.

Shamzaini turns to the panel and said he brought the Quran and wished to swear on it. 

He says it was his right to do so.

Amri’s family’s lawyer interjects, saying the inquiry is not an appropriate place for him to do that. 

Mah says Shamzaini had taken an oath, so there was no need for him to swear on the Quran. 

12.25pm: Gomez asks Shamzaini if it is true that when he went to Parid’s shop, he had no interest in tinting his car. 

Shamzaini disagrees. 

Gomez then says Shamzaini just wanted to use it (tinting car and renting shop) as an excuse to meet Norhayati for other purposes.

Shamzaini disagrees. 

Gomez then asks if he has brought his car for tinting since his last visit to Parid’s shop on May 12.

Shamzani says no.

Suhakam commissioner Mah Weng Kwai asks Shamzaini if he has taken his car to any other shop for tinting. 

Shamzaini says no. 

11.45am: Gomez asks Shamzaini if Parid knew that he wanted to rent the shop, and the officer says no.

The lawyer says Shamzaini had told the inquiry in an earlier statement two weeks ago that he wanted to rent the shop when he spoke to Parid

Shamzaini says he was just making small talk.

Gomez then asks Shamzani if he was not interested in renting the shop. The officer disagrees.

11.20am: Gomez asks Shamzainin when he met Norhayati.

The officer says they met on the morning of May 12 when she was coming out of her house.

Gomez says Norhayati had said in her testimony that she didn’t meet anyone.

The lawyer then asks Shamzaini who is telling the truth.

The policeman says he was telling the truth.

Gomez then asks Shamzaini why Norhayati would deny meeting him in the morning.

Shamzaini says he doesn’t know and asks Gomez to ask her instead.

10.55am: Gomez asks Shamzaini about his previous statement that he got the contact number for Parid Audio from a tattered banner at Norhayati’s house.

The lawyer asks if the number the police officer had obtained couldn’t be seen from the banner, to which Shamzaini agreed.

Gomez asks him again where he got Parid Audio’s contact.

Shamzaini says he got it from the torn banner.

Gomez asks the officer if Bukit Aman already had Parid Audio’s information and other people before Amri’s abduction.

Shamzaini disagrees.

10.30am: Gomez asks Shamzaini if he can see Perlis Hope from the main road and if there are any signs now.

The policeman says there was a signage before, but it is not there now.

Gomez said, according to Perlis Hope’s website, the charity organisation was established in 2015.

The lawyer then asks how Shamzaini could have seen the sign in 2014, to which the officer says it was four years ago, more or less, when he saw the signage.

The inquiry takes a break.

10.15am: Gomez says Shamzaini knew about the existence of Perlis Hope four years ago, according to his own statement.

The lawyer asks how he knew about Perlis Hope, to which the officer says there was a sign at its premises.

Gomez says there was no sign at the premises at that point in time and that Shamzaini is making it all up.

The policeman insists that there was a signboard at the premise.

9.55am: Gomez asks Shamzaini how he got the contact numbers of Perlis Hope and Amri’s family friend, Aizat.

He says the officer had Googled Perlis Hope after the owner of Parid Audio told him to, and obtained Aizat’s contact according to his statement.

Gomez says this contradicts the call log, which shows that the officer had gotten Aizat’s contact earlier.

Shamzaini says he did Google Perlis Hope earlier and got the contact, but didn’t know whose number it was.

Gomez asks Shamzaini if he is making contradictory statements, but the policeman denies it.

9.30am: Perlis Special Branch Sgt Shamzaini Mohd Daud takes the stand.

Amri family lawyer Jerald Gomez asks Shamzaini about his statement on how he got Perlis Hope’s contact information.

The officer said he got the information from Facebook.

Gomez tells Shamzaini that he had said in his statement to Suhakam that he got the number from a Google search.

He asks the officer if he knows the difference between Google and Facebook.

Shamzaini says he used Google to get the Facebook link. – July 24, 2018.