PARLIAMENT Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein defended the police force against criticisms of inaction in the murder case of cosmetics millionaire Sosilawati Lawiya and three others, denying that past reports lodged on the main suspects in the murder were neglected.

 

hishammuddin hussein 160310 pc at parliament The Sembrong MP came under the spotlight when opposition parliamentarian Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Ipoh Timor) asked Hishammuddin ( left ) in the Dewan Rakyat during the question-and-answer session to state the details and number of police reports lodged against the suspects, who are said to be Banting-based lawyers.

Hishammuddin said that before the suspects were linked to the Sosilawati murder, six police reports had been lodged against the duo, while one of the cases is undergoing trial.

He explained that of the six reports lodged between 2005 and 2010, five cases involved fraud and one involved a missing person report.

Investigation into three of the six cases have been wrapped up, said Hishammuddin.  

NONE Lim, however, expressed dissatisfaction with the answers of the Home Minister, saying public confidence in the police force and its professionalism was falling.

If all missing person reports had been taken seriously and resolved sooner, the slaying of Sosilawati ( right ) and three others could have been avoided, Lim argued.

Hishammuddin responded by saying that “the question of police inaction does not arise”, as the police have probed into all the reports involving the lawyers.

Other than the missing person report, the other reports lodged pertained to allegations of fraud in land transactions, not murder, he said.

Between 2000 to 210, the police have solved 21,344 out of 35,473 missing persons cases, said Hishammuddin.

The opposition should not be selective on the issues brought up, he said further.

“Be realistic and rational... don’t be selective and sensationalise matters for your own gain,” Hishammuddin quipped.

Sosilawati, 47, and three others - lawyer Ahmad Kamil Abdul Karim, 32, CIMB Bank officer Noorhisham Mohammad, 38, and driver Kamarudin Shansudin, 44, went missing on Aug 30. Their remains were later found in Ladang Gadong, near Banting.

Eight suspects have been detained, among them, two lawyer brothers.

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