Sirul's extradition process still under negotiation

comments     Bernama     Published     Updated

PARLIAMENT | The process to bring home former police corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, now in Australia, through extradition proceedings, is still at the negotiation stage, according to the Home Ministry.

In a written reply at the Dewan Rakyat, it said the extradition request was not just handled by the ministry but also involved internal discussions with the police, Attorney-General's Chambers and the Foreign Ministry.

"It must be done through diplomatic channels and be submitted together with documents pertaining to the accused, such as his identification information and documents on the charge and facts of the case," said the ministry in a written reply to Lim Lip Eng (DAP-Segambut) today.

Lim wanted to know whether the police were investigating claims by Sirul, a former police commando, to expose the names of five people who had attempted to bribe or coax him into implicating Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, in the murder of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu and the current status of extradition of Sirul to Malaysia.

The ministry said the extradition request could only be made for cases that met the requirements of 'dual criminality', that is, the case must be considered a criminal case in both countries and the punishment for such an offence in both countries must not be less than one year of imprisonment.

"Sirul Azhar's case has gained extensive international media coverage, including the death penalty imposed on him. It is understood that the expulsion of Sirul to Malaysia conflicts with Australian policy opposing the death penalty," according to its reply.

In the meantime, the ministry said investigation into the Malaysiakini report on Feb 12, regarding Sirul's disclosure of five individuals who tried to bribe or persuade him to associate Najib in the Altantuya murder case was still ongoing.

"The case is being investigated under section 120B and section 124C of the Penal Code. The investigation is still ongoing," it added.

- Bernama



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