Police may be seeking a lower charge against a warden who is being investigated for murder over the death of tahfiz student Mohamad Thaqif Amin Mohd Gaddafi.

Deputy inspector-general of police Noor Rashid Ibrahim said this is because a murder charge under Section 302 of the Penal Code may not be possible after an autopsy found that Thaqif had died from leptospirosis, and not due to alleged beatings.

"We can't charge for murder, so we will do an investigation based on this latest development and we will refer to the deputy public prosecutor and possibly suggest lowering the (charge) section to causing injury," he said when met in Bukit Aman today.

Noor Rashid (photo) said there will also be an open court inquest on Thaqif's death for all to hear.

Thaqif, 11, died on April 26 after both his legs and his right arm were amputated, following suspected abuse at Madrasah Tahfiz al-Jauhar in Kampung Lukut, Kota Tinggi. The school denied this.

He was suspected of being beaten using a rubber hose, with his remains exhumed on May 18 for a sample from his leg to be retrieved for further investigation.

The police had been investigating the case for murder.

However, the Health Ministry yesterday announced that an autopsy found that the boy had died of leptospirosis, a disease caused by exposure to rat urine.

Thaqif's mother has rejected this explanation.

Review SOP over escape of detainee

Meanwhile, on a separate matter, Noor Rashid said police will be taking serious action against the Penang cops accused of lodging a false report to cover up the escape of a detainee.

"We will be reviewing our standard operating procedures, and if we need to take action against their supervisor, we will do so," he said.

Yesterday, it was reported that eight police personnel in George Town were arrested for lodging a false report.

Penang police chief Chuah Ghee Lye claimed the cops had been paid by three detainees to bring them out of the Bayan Baru police lockup to visit friends and family.

The cops had allegedly sneaked out the detainees out on the pretext of taking them to a hospital for treatment.

However, the detainees were instead brought to a condominium in Sungai Ara where they had meetings with friends and family in the early hours of Sunday.

One of the detainees Anuar Ayat was then brought to another meeting with his friend in Sungai Nibong Besar - where he made his escape.

Cops, however, claimed that Anuar had escaped when the police vehicle he was transported in broke down.

The cops involved in the incident have been remanded for four days to facilitate investigations.

Noor Rashid believed the escaped detainee is still in the country.