Cops quiz Sivarasa on SD

KUALA LUMPUR: Subang MP R. Sivarasa was questioned by the police for about four hours over private investigator P. Balasubramaniam's first statutory declaration on the murder case of Altantuya Shaariibuu.

Sivarasa, who is also one of the lawyers for Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, said he was asked if Balasubramaniam had made the statutory declaration under duress.

He said the investigation was mainly focused on the first statutury declaration except for one question on the second statutory declaration, which he said he was not involved in.

"I told the police that I am convinced that the first statutory declaration was made voluntarily and not under duress and the first statutory declaration is the truth.

"But I do not know about the second statutory declaration," Sivarasa told reporters Friday after giving his statement to the police at the Commercial Crime Investigation Department here.

Sivarasa arrived at the police department at 10am with his lawyer, Oh Choong Ghee, and finished recording his statement at 2pm.

Balasubramaniam made his first statutory declaration on July 1, linking Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda to the murder case.

On July 4, he made a second sworn statement to retract his first document.

Sivarasa said he was asked about his first meeting with Balasubramaniam and the information he had about the first statutory declaration.

"I met him about two months before he made his first statutory declaration and he told me about Abdul Razak Baginda and all the information that (he said) was deleted by the police.

"I told him to get a lawyer and record whatever it is he wanted to say and when I was told that the statutory declaration was ready, I met him again and called for a press conference," he said.

Sivarasa, who is also PKR vice-president, said although he was willing to cooperate with the police, he felt that there should be an independent investigation on which statutory declaration was true.

"PKR reiterates our call for a Royal Commission, an independent body to investigate which of the statutory declaration is true," he said.

ELIZABETH LOOI
Star Online
25/07/08