‘I SAW PEOPLE HITTING SOMETHING’
Witness says he later saw a man in fireman’s trousers on the ground
AWITNESS told the Coroner’s Court that he saw a group of people circling and assaulting what appeared to be a person during the riot at the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Subang Jaya on Nov 27.
Nasaruddin Abdullah, 23, said the individuals were among 30 people who surrounded the person after the Fire Rescue Team (FRT) and Emergency Medical Response Service (EMRS) vehicles left the scene.
The witness said he saw five or six people punching, stepping and kicking something before he noticed that a man wearing fireman’s trousers was lying on the ground.
The 17th witness said this in response to questions by deputy public prosecutor Hamdan Hamzah on the 11th day of the inquest into the cause of death of fireman Muhammad Adib Mohd Kassim, 24.
He said he saw a vehicle on fire and a fire truck arriving to put out the blaze. However, the truck was attacked by a mob.
“I saw the truck and EMRS vehicle reversing while being attacked with crash helmets, wooden sticks and water bottles.
“Some attackers tried to climb the truck.”
Hamdan: After the (EMRS) van turned, what did you see?
Nasaruddin: After it turned, I saw 30 people surrounding... I’m not sure if it was a person. (They) were surrounding something and they were cursing and scolding in Tamil.
Hamdan: But you saw about 30 people surrounding something. Where did you see this happening and where were you?
Nasaruddin: I was in that area. Hamdan: What did you see? Nasaruddin: I saw 30 people moving as if they were hitting someone. After that, I heard people shouting in Tamil “police, police”, and the 30 people ran away.
The witness, who spoke in Tamil, said after the group ran to the temple, he saw a man wearing a fireman’s trousers at the scene.
Hamdan: You said the group looked like they were hitting something. Can you show us how?
Nasaruddin: They were like kicking and punching, but I didn’t see anything in the middle. It looked as if they were punching towards the ground.
Hamdan: You witnessed punching and kicking. Were all 30 people doing it?
Nasaruddin: I didn’t see 30 people doing it. Only five or six people... The rest were screaming and surrounding (something) in that (circle) formation.
Hamdan: You said you saw (people) punching?
Nasaruddin: I’m sure they were
When asked how long he witnessed the incident, Nasaruddin said: “About one minute. Everything happened so quickly.”
He said he then saw eight to 10 people, some recording the incident, carrying the man away.
The witness told lawyer Kamaruzaman A. Wahab, who is representing Adib’s family, that the group of people were kicking and stepping on something, but he was unsure what.
Kamaruzaman: Did you hear anyone screaming in pain? Nasaruddin: No.
Kamaruzaman: The 30 people, were they yelling loudly? Nasaruddin: No. Kamaruzaman: Did you hear anyone shouting “don’t hit me”?
Nasaruddin: No.
Earlier, the witness said he went to the temple with a friend named Karthik to find out what was happening. It was reported that Adib died from severe injuries sustained in an alleged assault by rioters at the temple.
He was part of an emergency response team despatched to the scene to douse a torched vehicle.
Despite showing signs of recovery while being treated at the National Heart Institute in Kuala Lumpur, Adib died on Dec 17.
The hearing was conducted before coroner Rofiah Mohamad.