Family wants death in custody reclassified as murder

KUALA LUMPUR: A group of 80 people, including family members of a man who died in police custody, gathered at Bukit Aman today to submit a memorandum demanding the case be investigated as murder.

The memorandum, supported by dozens of non-governmental organisations including Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) and Amnesty International Malaysia, urged police to reclassify the case under Section 302 of the Penal Code.

LFL lawyers representing the family said Noorizwan Zulkefly, 42, was arrested on Sept 20 and held at the Cheras police headquarters for 11 days. His family claimed they were never informed of his arrest or detention.

"On the night of Sept 30 at 9.30pm, Noorizwan was taken to Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz (HCTM), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), in critical condition before being pronounced dead at 1.52am on Oct 1.

"The deceased's sister, Nooranis Zulkefly, only learned of his death at 8pm on Oct 1 via a WhatsApp message from a police officer, approximately 18 hours after his passing.

"Nooranis lodged two police reports on Oct 2 and 3 requesting a full investigation," an LFL representative told reporters outside Bukit Aman.

The family said a senior forensic pathologist at HCTM UKM informed them on Oct 12 that the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head.

The post-mortem revealed extensive injuries across the body, including severe skull swelling, brain haemorrhage, injuries around the eyes and ears, internal intestinal bleeding, and soft tissue damage to his limbs, chest, back, and hips.

The family claimed that no official explanation has been provided regarding his condition during detention or the origin of his injuries, adding that requests for information from Bukit Aman senior investigating officers were rejected.

The memorandum demands the preservation of all evidence, including lockup closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage, lockup diaries, detention records, and medical files, as well as regular transparent updates on the progress of the investigation.

Kuala Lumpur police chief Fadil Marsus previously maintained that Noorizwan's arrest and detention followed standard operating procedures.

He said the case is being investigated by Bukit Aman's Criminal Investigation Unit on Deaths in Custody (USJKT) in collaboration with the Integrity and Standards Compliance Department (JIPS).

LFL lawyer N. Surendran had earlier urged police to classify the death as murder, pointing out the severe physical injuries and the 18-hour delay in notifying the family.