A Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) officer burst into tears while testifying before the royal commission of inquiry investigating the death of Teoh Beng Hock.

NONE Mohd Anuar Ismail ( right ), who had accompanied Teoh to the Selangor MACC office on July 15, 2009, said that he cannot bear the emotional trauma that he has undergone since the political aide’s fatal fall.

Teoh was a witness in the MACC probe into alleged misappropriation of Selangor government funds by his employer, Seri Kembangan assemblyperson Ean Yong Hian Wah.

Inquiry panel chief James Foong asked Mohd Anuar if he takes responsibility over Teoh’s death, since he was the investigating officer.

Mohd Anuar:

No, I’ve fulfilled my duties to the best of my ability.

Foong: So what was the problem (you faced)?

Mohd Anuar: Anxiety and fear.

Foong: What caused it?

Mohd Anuar: The pictures.

The officer was referring to photographs of him accompanying Teoh to the MACC office that were “spread” all over the media.

Foong then jumped to another matter - Mohd Anuar said he had made a stop at his house before following orders to report to the MACC headquarters in Putrajaya after Teoh’s body was found on July 16.

MACC Selangor investigations unit chief Hairul Ilham Hamzah, who testified before Mohd Anuar, had said that they discovered Teoh’s body on the fifth floor landing of Plaza Masalam and informed their direct superior, the division deputy director Hishammuddin Hashim.

Hishammuddin had apparently instructed the duo to immediately come over to the headquarters, Hairul had said, adding that he drove the car and made a stopover at Mohd Anuar’s house. 

'I wanted to meet my wife'

The panel chief asked why he had made a stop at his house, and Mohd Anuar said he wanted to meet his wife.

Mohd Anuar: I wanted to express my feelings to my wife.

Foong: Ventilating your emotions to your wife? What did you tell her?

Mohd Anuar:

I (told her) that I feel the public outrage and asked her to take care of herself and the children.

At that point Mohd Anuar broke down.

Foong: In short you were not ventilating your feelings but you are warning her that there are angry people... you could have called her, it would have been faster.

Mohd Anuar repeated that he felt “anxiety and fear” after seeing himself with Teoh in the newspapers, as he was “worried public anger would be directed at him”.

As he was unable to hold back his tears, the panel adjourned for 15 minutes.

When the inquiry resumed after recess, conducting officer Awang Amardajaya continued to cross-examine the witness.

Mohd Anuar said that his wife had observed two unknown cars “wandering” around my house and the neighbourhood.

azlan Awang asked if he broke any law in handling the Teoh matter, and Mohd Anuar said, “My only mistake is allowing the witness (Teoh) to linger in the office unguarded.”

He had earlier recounted that after Teoh’s statement was recorded he was allowed to return home as it was 3.30am on July 16, but he was informed that Teoh wanted to rest in the office.

Mohd Anuar said he was asleep in the surau and later on changed his sleeping location to the main sofa somewhere close to the MACC’s entrance at the lobby.

He added that when he woke up about 8.30am Teoh was no longer there but had left behind his backpack with his belongings.

The investigator said he searched for Teoh with Hairul but as he was nowhere to be found, Mohd Anuar said he reported it to Hishammuddin, and his superior had instructed for them to hold on to the bag and wait for Teoh to redeem it.

As he said that it did not strike him to pursue enquiring about Teoh’s disappearance, Foong interrupted and asked, “Isn’t dangerous for him (Teoh) to be wandering around?”

“Teoh Beng Hock is an important witness (so much so) he was suspected of being a partner in crime and an accomplice. The rooms in MACC definitely contained important documents. What if he went into your room and took something?”

'Teoh was not that sort'

Mohd Anuar replied that he did not “assess” Teoh to be “that sort” and appeared “soft spoken” throughout.

Asked about his feelings when Teoh’s body was discovered, Mohd Anuar said he was “simply shocked”.

“It is my witness. The day before he was fine and looked healthy and then he was dead... I was shocked as to how this happened,” he implored.

NONE Coming back to Mohd Anuar’s sudden emotional breakdown, commissioner Dr Hatta Shaharom ( right ) asked why he cried.

“After these two years I feel aggrieved. This case involves the death of a witness (and) as an investigating officer it was my responsibility.

“The department was in a terrible situation after that. No work was done, no one wanted to come to our office.

“As a human, the case had a huge impact on me and on MACC as an organisation,” conveyed Mohd Anuar.

Hatta: I hear you telling us about you, your wife and your children, and MACC but (have you thought) about the deceased (Teoh’s) family and friends, how much they would have suffered?

Mohd Anuar: I sympathise with them but what happened is not in my control.

He added that if he could “turn back time” he would have ensured that Teoh was never left unattended and escorted to his car out of the building.

Foong: I see that you are remorseful but what happened is not beyond your control. Everything was in your control.

Foong then asked him if he had suggestions to beef up MACC’s procedures, and Mohd Anuar suggested tighter security measures and CCTVs to be installed, as well as a resting place being allocated.

The inquiry resumes tomorrow morning.

MACC: Teoh had no choice