DPP’s murder: MACC officer says she received ‘warning’ from accused

KUALA LUMPUR: A Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigating officer told the High Court yesterday that the first accused in the murder case of deputy public prosecutor Datuk Anthony Kevin Morais had uttered words of warning to her.

P.Sumathi, 31, said the first accused, Colonel Dr R. Kunaseegaran, uttered the words ‘be careful’ when she was investigating his case (Dr Kunaseegaran) at the Sessions Court in Shah Alam, Selangor.

She explained that the words were spoken by Dr Kunaseegaran when she delivered a warrant to the accused on June 22, 2015, on additional charges against him and to inform him to attend the hearing under Section 168 of the Penal Code.

“He received the ‘summons’ and told me to ‘be careful’,” she said when questioned by deputy public prosecutor Saiful Edris Zainuddin, in the Kevin Morais murder trial, which entered its 34th day yesterday.

Sumathi is the 51st prosecution witness in the prosecution of Dr Kunaseegaran under Section 168 of the Penal Code.

To Saiful Edris’ question whether the doctor uttered abusive words, Sumathi said, “No, (the accused) did not utter harsh words but more of a warning, namely to be careful”.

Sumathi had earlier told the court that Dr Kunaseegaran had previously been indicted on 11 charges at the Shah Alam court, under three different sections.

“As I recall, there were 11 charges for three types of offences, namely one charge under Section 17 (a) of the MACC Act 2009, three charges under Section 168 of the Penal Code and seven charges under Section 403 of the Penal Code,” she said.

Sumathi explained that she only investigated the case under the MACC Act while the cases under the Penal Code were being investigated by two different investigating officers.

When asked whether Dr Kunaseegaran attended the hearings alone whenever his case was mentioned at the Shah Alam Sessions Court, the witness said there were people who accompanied the accused but she was not sure of their relationship.

“Those who followed are the second man (the second accused G. Gunasekaran) who is next to Dr Kunaseegaran and the man sitting at the right end (seventh accused S.Ravi Chandaran),” she said, pointing towards the dock.

During cross-examination by lawyer Datuk N.Sivananthan representing Dr Kunaseegaran whether Sumathi understood that issuing a threat is a criminal offence, the witness said she did not say the words uttered by Dr. Kunaseegaran was a threat rather it was more of a warning.

“In my understanding when someone says so, I assume these words will invite trouble and danger to me where it is a reminder warning me to be careful,” she said, at the same time stating that she did not make a police report over the words.

Sumathi also agreed with Sivananthan that to this day nothing untoward had happened to her as result of Dr. Kunaseegaran’s words. - Bernama