Customs Department officials today barred the media from interviewing family members of the late Ahmad Sarbani Mohamed who were at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Hospital this afternoon.

When approached, the hospital authority also declined to say when the post-mortem on the deceased, who was assistant director at the Selangor customs department, could be completed.

A hospital source told Bernama that the post-mortem in a high-profile case like this requires time to complete because a second autopsy might be needed to make the findings conclusive.

Cuepacs president Omar Osman, meanwhile, who was also at the hospital, told the media that the Customs Department should be given ample time to calm the situation.

"We will provide assistance to Ahmad Sarbani's family and we appeal for everyone to not complicate matters," he said.

Efforts to contact Customs director-general Mohamed Khalid Yusuf, who was in Tasik Kenyir, Terengganu for the Pan-Malaysia Customs Directors Meeting proved futile but one of the officers said that he would return to Kuala Lumpur tonight.

He said that he was scheduled to hold a news conference at the Sultan Mahmud Airport in Kuala Terengganu before leaving for the national capital.

Malaysian Customs Workers' Union secretary Mohd Mazlan Mohd Shaari, when contacted, declined to comment, saying they had no details about the incident, yet.

"We will meet the press on Friday and we will state our stand on the matter," he said.

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