GEORGE TOWN – Veteran lawyer S. Raveentharan has called on the Royal Malaysian Police to thoroughly investigate cases before they proceed to detain anyone, following a controversial arrest in 2020 during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
He said this was because there have been numerous cases where suspects were nabbed based on the content of reports, when those lodging them may have done so out of malice or had hidden agendas.
In a press conference, Raveentharan called on police to reform their investigative standard operating procedure, in line with the government’s agenda.
“The saying of innocent until proven guilty must be upheld, and if there is a need to detain the suspect, it must be done in a discreet manner to avoid casting a stigma unless police have the circumstantial evidence to charge the person.”
Citing an example, Raveentharan said that his client, Datuk Seri Sabaruddin Ahmad, was arrested after an owner of a nasi kandar restaurant lodged a report over alleged harassment in 2020.
Sabaruddin is the president of Pertiga Malaysia, a non-governmental organisation recognised by the Registrar of Societies.
“With no due cause and merely based on the report, the cops arrested my client. He was arrested at a hotel, handcuffed, and dragged through the main lobby before the eyes of guests and hotel staffers. It was a humiliating experience.”
Raveentharan said that police could have persuaded him to report himself to a station to have his statement recorded, instead of arresting him on the spot before investigating the matter in detail.
Subsequently, the case was declared as “no further action”, and his client was not charged with criminal intimidation upon being released after a three-day remand order.
As a result, Raveentharan said that the client has instructed him to file a defamation suit against the restaurant owner, and also a media outlet for highlighting the arrest without contacting his client.
He noted that under Article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.”
Raveentharan said that there is a need for police to exercise various options before choosing to detain a person to ensure that justice is upheld.
“Usually, people remember an arrest, seldom do they recall a release.”
Raveentharan said that the libel case is on the basis of a false report being lodged.
He said that he hopes by highlighting this incident, there will no longer be contentious forms of arrest in the country.
Detention should only occur when police have completed their investigations before moving in to arrest the suspect, he insisted. – The Vibes, March 23, 2023
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