At the start of the second stage of the trial yesterday, the public gallery was barely filled. Abdul Razak was not there, but his lawyer Wong Khian Keong was present.
Abdul Razak, 47, will be a strongly felt absence as the case revolves around his affair with Altantuya, 28, which ended badly in 2005. He was charged with asking two policemen to kill her after she harassed him. The High Court found no evidence that he did so, and acquitted him on Oct 31.
The policemen, Azilah Hadri, 31, and Sirul Azhar Umar, 36, were, however, ordered to make their defence when the trial resumes on Jan 15.
The sordid details of the case first came to light in an affidavit filed by Abdul Razak two years ago to support his application for bail. He failed but that document was pivotal to Judge Mohd Zaki Md Yasin's decision to acquit him.
The judge found that the prosecution did not bring any rebuttal evidence against crucial statements in the lengthy affidavit that negated the charge of abetment.
When the case began a year ago, lead prosecutor Tun Majid Hamzah said there was evidence to show that Altantuya was pestering Abdul Razak for money after their romance ended in 2005, and that he started refusing her demands in October 2006. He also said there was evidence to show that Abdul Razak had asked the policemen to help "resolve" the problem.
However, according to the judge, the prosecution's evidence did not rebut Abdul Razak's account of the events as listed in his affidavit.
In a nutshell, it recounted how Abdul Razak had asked Musa Safri, a security aide of Deputy Premier Najib Razak, for help to get a police beat box at his home because of Altantuya's harassment.
Musa reportedly told him that he would introduce him to a police officer. The affidavit detailed how Altantuya had created a commotion at Abdul Razak's home on Oct 17, 2006, and he had called Musa for help.
Musa said the Brickfields district Criminal Investigation Department chief would call him.
Azilah Hadri called him the next day. Abdul Razak said he asked for patrols around his house, and on Oct 19, 2006, called Azilah when Altantuya turned up at his house.
She was taken away by three police officers that night. Abdul Razak said he went to Najib's office the next day, where he bumped into Musa. He asked Musa what had happened to Altantuya, but the aide said Azilah did not tell him.
The judge found that these statements were corroborated by witnesses at the trial, and "clearly negated and nullified the act of abetment as alleged".
It was on this basis that he acquitted Abdul Razak on the charge, which essentially required the prosecution to prove that he had instructed the policemen to kill Altantuya.
- The Singapore Straits Times
