Court moves decision on RM100 mil suit filed by Altantuya family to Oct 19

SHAH ALAM – The high court here has postponed its decision on the RM100 million civil suit filed by the family of murdered Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu to October 19. 

The judgement was supposed to be delivered today by judge Datuk Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera but was rescheduled at the request of the plaintiffs and claimants. 

Representing the plaintiffs, lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo told The Vibes that the previous round of submissions were delayed due to members of the team suffering from Covid-19.

In 2007, Altantuya’s parents – Shaariibuu Setev and Altantsetseg Sanjaa – filed a RM100 million suit against former Special Branch officers Azilah Hadri and Sirul Azhar Umar as well as one-time political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda and the Malaysian government. 

Included as plaintiffs alongside Altantuya’s parents were the couple’s two grandsons, Mungunshagai Bayarjargal and Altanshagai Munkhtulga, with the latter’s name being removed from the list when he died in 2017. 

In their statement of claims, the family said Altantuya’s death resulted in them suffering mental shock and psychological trauma. 

Besides compensation, they are also seeking exemplary and aggravated damages. 

The civil suit hearing, which began in 2019, saw a total of 26 plaintiff witnesses taking the stand while the government presented three witnesses, not including Razak who elected not to testify. 

In May this year, senior federal counsel Zetty Zurina Kamaruddin, representing the Malaysian government, informed the court that they had rested the case after their last witness, retired police officer Mastor Mohd Ariff, 60, concluded his testimony. 

Azilah and Sirul were found guilty by the Shah Alam High Court in 2009 of Altantuya’s murder, while Razak, charged with conspiring with the duo to kill her, was acquitted of the charge in October 2008 without having to enter his defence.

On August 23, 2013, the Court of Appeal allowed Azilah and Sirul’s appeal and acquitted them, but this was overturned by the Federal Court on January 13, 2015, following the prosecution’s appeal.

However, on January 13, 2015, the Federal Court overturned Azilah and Sirul’s acquittal and imposed the mandatory death sentence, with then chief justice Tun Arifin Zakaria also issuing an arrest warrant for Sirul who failed to turn up in court. 

Sirul had fled to Australia before the final verdict.

The former police commando had failed in his application to seek asylum, however, the Australian government stated that they would not extradite Sirul back to Malaysia. 

In December 2020, the Federal Court dismissed a review application filed by Azilah the previous year to set aside his conviction and death sentence, with a five-member panel saying that based on records, there was no injustice against him in the case. – The Vibes, August 30, 2022