PRESENT POINT POWER

For DAY 3 Trial , Go H E R E

ABOVE & BELOW: Graphics from the Sun

RM1.75mil demand;

Private eye: Altantuya asked Razak for US$500,000 and plane tickets. 'Altantuya last seen taken away by trio'
DAY 2

ABOVE: P BalaSubramaniam arriving in court

Altantuya Shaariibuu demanded US$500,000 (about RM1.7 million) cash and three air tickets to Mongolia from political analyst Abdul Razak Abdullah Baginda just a few days day before she was murdered, the High Court heard today. Witness P. Balasubramaniam, the private investigator hired by Abdul Razak to protect his daughter, testified that Altantuya had asked him to convey this demand to her former lover, who had been avoiding her. Continuing his testimony on the second day of the murder trial, he also disclosed that:

* Altantuya had created a scene outside Abdul Razak's house late on Oct 17 last year, screaming abuses and demanding that the political analyst speak to her.

* She was later taken to the police station but her private eye, Ang Chong Beng, persuaded her not to lodge a police report against Abdul Razak, with whom she had a whirlwind affair. That was when she made known her demand.

* Balasubramaniam later met Abdul Razak on this and he said he would discuss it with a "pegawai atasan" (senior officer) and would take action after that.

'Altantuya asked for US$500,000 from Razak'

Comment

NOTE: This NST report in Nov 07 2006 last year; Was there in “information leak” then??

The New Straits Times said that police are looking into an extortion plot,and that the prominent analyst could have been blackmailed by the woman demanding US$500,000. It also said that the Mongolian woman could possibly be linked to a sex-cum-blackmail scam with international links.

by R. Surenthira Kumar and S. Tamarai Chelvi, SUN

ABOVE: First Prosecution witness, spoke in Tamil

SHAH ALAM (June 19, 2007): Altantuya Shaariibuu asked for US$500,000 and three flight tickets to Mongolia from Abdul Razak Abdullah, a private investigator told a High Court here today. P. Balasubramaniam, 47, (ABOVE) said Altantuya, whom he referred to as Aminah, made the demand at the Brickfields police station on Oct 17, 2006. He said she was brought to the police station after she had created a scene outside Abdul Razak's house in Damansara by screaming abuses and demanding that he speak to her.

"Aminah asked for US$500,000 and three flight tickets to Mongolia. I told her I will discuss it with Razak the next day and I will call her private investigator, Ang Chong Beng," Balasubramaniam said. He said when he told Abdul Razak the next day, he was told Abdul Razak would call a senior police officer and will take action. Earlier, Balasubramaniam told the court that on the night of Oct 17, he received a phone call on his handphone from Abdul Razak saying a woman was making noise in front of his house. Balasubramanian said when he arrived at Abdul Razak's house, he saw Aminah in front of the main gate of the house and a Chinese man, whom he later identified as Ang, in a car.

"Altantuya was shouting: 'Razak bastard. You come out. I want to speak to you'," he said. He said he called K. Suras Kumar, his employee, who was also on his way to the house and told him to call the police. When DPP Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah asked whether he saw Abdul Razak come out of the house, he said Abdul Razak did not. He said two policemen later arrived in a patrol car and that he explained to them that Aminah was disturbing the peace. "The police told Aminah to get into the car and they also asked me to go to the Brickfields police station." He said Aminah was not arrested. He said at the police station, he saw Altantuya at the inquiry room. "Aminah said she wanted to lodge a police report. But Ang advised Aminah not to lodge a report. Ang told her that he will try to talk to me about her request to Razak," Balasubramaniam.

He said Aminah then made her demand of US$500,000 and the three flight tickets. He said he was talking to them about 11pm to 12pm. Balasubramaniam said he briefed Abdul Razak the next day at his office, after 12pm, on what had transpired and asked him why he did not lodge a police report. He said Abdul Razak told him he would call a "pegawai atasan" (senior officer) and would take action. Balasubramaniam He said he also told Abdul Razak that he and his men were in danger as Aminah had employed a private investigator, who had obtained his and his employees' particulars and that he could do something to them. "I told him I wanted to withdraw myself from the assignment." He said Abdul Razak calmed him down and took his particulars and said he would call a top officer and take appropriate action. He said Abdul Razak told him to withdraw his two workers, who were on stand by at Hotel Malaya where Altantuya and her friends were staying. Abdul Razak also asked Balasubramaniam to guard his house from 7pm only.

Earlier, when the case resumed in the morning, Tun Abdul Majid told the court that an English daily had reported that "she (Altantuya) may have died the cruel death of being blown up alive". He said the information was not mentioned in court and said reporters should not make an assumption but instead report accurately. Judge Datuk Mohd Zaki Yasin told reporters to pay attention and be accurate in their reporting.

ABOVE: Abdul Razak Baginda arriving in court on Day 2 of trial and BELOW: the other two accused

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'Altantuya last seen taken away by trio'

SHAH ALAM (June 19, 2007): Altantuya Shaariibuu was taken away in an unmarked car by two men and a woman, believed to be police personnel, from Abdul Razak Baginda's home before she disappeared, the court was told today.

In continuing his testimony after lunch, private investigator P. Balasubramaniam, said Altantuya boarded the red Proton Wira on her own accord upon being told the police had come to arrest her. Replying to questions posed by Deputy Public Prosecutor Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah, Balasubramaniam said the last time he saw her was on Oct 19, last year, the day she was seen leaving with the trio in the car. Speaking in Tamil, Balasubramaniam said the two men and a woman arrived at Abdul Razak's home after the Mongolian woman had gone there with two other women in a taxi about 7.20pm that day.

The three women did not alight from the taxi but left after stopping briefly. He said he then informed Abdul Razak about the visit and was told to notify him if Altantuya returned. He said about half an hour later, the taxi returned with Altantuya alone and stopped about 8m from Abdul Razak's home on Jalan Setiawangsa in Damansara. She walked towards Balasubramaniam and enquired if Abdul Razak was in and he told her he was not. Balasubramaniam then informed Abdul Razak of her arrival and was told to keep Altantuya occupied until the police arrived to pick her up. When asked who had called the police, Balasubramaniam said it was not him. Continuing with his testimony,

Balasubramaniam said Altantuya started telling him about her family's sad story. Altantuya said her mother was suffering from cancer and her father had passed away. "She further claimed she was threatened by her elder brother to come to Malaysia to demand money from Abdul Razak, as he had gambled away his apartment and needed the money to get it back," said Balasubramaniam.

He added Altantuya also told him she could not pay for her room at Hotel Malaya. By this time, the red Proton Wira arrived and a man walked towards the private investigator and asked if he was Balasubramaniam. When he said yes, the man pointed towards Altantuya and asked if she was the woman referred to by Abdul Razak. He then walked back to the car and made several calls, but Balasubramaniam said he did not know what was said. Altantuya, Balasubramaniam said, then asked him who the man was and he replied that it could be a relative of Abdul Razak. He told judge Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin that he did not tell Altantuya the man was a police personnel as he feared she would flee as the taxi which brought her there was still waiting for her. He said a blue Proton Iswara also passed by and the driver of the car stared at him but the car did not stop. Balasubramaniam said the man claiming to be a policeman walked back from the Wira and told him he would be taking Altantuya with him in the car. When Balasubra-maniam told Altantuya the police had come to arrest her, he said she walked towards the car and sat in the rear seat.
He said a woman seated in the car's front seat then alighted and sat in the rear seat with Altantuya while another man, who was in the back seat, exchanged places with the woman. Tun Abdul Majid then asked Balasubramaniam about the visibility at that time, and he said there were streetlights near the house. Asked if he could clearly see the trio who took Altantuya away, he said he could not identify their faces.
Balasubramaniam then informed Abdul Razak the Mongolian woman had been taken away by the police. He said he only replied "okay". Asked what happened next, the private investigator said the man who claimed to be a police personnel paid the taxi driver RM50 on being told Altantuya had yet to pay him. Balasubramaniam said after the Wira left, the taxi driver told him Altantuya had promised to pay him RM150 for the trip.
The courtroom burst into laughter when Balasubramaniam said the cabby then started to relate his sad story. He said he was facing financial woes and needed money. Balasubramaniam then told him to return the following day and gave the cabby RM50. Tun Abdul Majid then asked Balasubramaniam if he could identify the two Mongolian women who accompanied Altantuya to Abdul Razak's home. Altantuya's cousin Uurintuya Gal Ochir and friend Namira Gerelmaa were then brought into the courtroom and Bala subramaniam positively identified them

= == = = ==NOW CONTRAST this with (BELOW) the statement given by Abdul Razak and the Dialogue the previous judge Segara had
(from the January 19 2007 hearing for bail, Go H E RE for reference).

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Abdul Razak said if he had really wanted to kill Altantuya, it would have been easier for him to pay a hired killer to eliminate her outside Malaysia so that he would not be linked to it. The affidavit also included a statement Abdul Razak had given to the police on Oct 31. In it, Abdul Razak had said that he had been together with Altantuya in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, France and in Kuala Lumpur between 2004 and 2005 and that they were lovers. Abdul Razak said his affair with the Mongolian woman lasted about seven months. "She claimed to be a student and did side business (cari makan sampingan)," Abdul Razak said, adding that he gave her money on several occasions, including US$10,000 on three occasions. This money, he said, was to meet the medical expenses of Altantuya’s mother who was suffering from cancer.

The political analyst said sometime towards the end of 2005, he stopped giving Altantuya money and lodged a police report on Oct 23 last year as "I could not tolerate her nuisance". By narrating what happened before and after Altantuya’s death, Wong was trying to show the court that Abdul Razak did not participate in the crime and that the bail application should be allowed. He also put forward the argument that bail should be allowed on grounds that Abdul Razak was ill. Segara rejected both arguments.The judge said there were no exceptional circumstances to allow bail as Abdul Razak did not submit a medical certificate despite claiming to be suffering from bronchitis.. "There is also no dispute that the accused, on face value, abetted in the crime," he said, adding that Abdul Razak and Azilah were in constant communication before Altantuya was killed. The judge said Altantuya had gone to Abdul Razak’s house on Oct 19 and stopped in front of his house (see Below, in Damansara Heights).

ABOVE: The scene (near Abdul Razak's house) where Altantuya was last seen driven away in a RED Proton Wira Car

He said there had been no necessity to arrest her. "Azilah was not acting as a police officer in his dealings with Abdul Razak," Segara concluded, adding that Abdul Razak did not sever ties despite the policeman boasting of killing six or seven people. The judge said upon reading the entire affidavit, he found that Altantuya had not made any threats or blackmailed Abdul Razak but that "he wanted to eliminate her because of the financial drain on him and because she was leeching him". He said Abdul Razak could have gone to the police. Also, he had Gurkha guards to protect his family. "Under these circumstances, bail should not be granted because the alleged crime committed was serious," he said. He also chided Abdul Razak for dragging the name of the deputy prime minister into the picture. Abdul Razak and his family members appeared shocked when Segara made his ruling. They were in tears as they hugged him before he left the courtroom. Abdul Razak has three options: To stay in jail until his case comes up for hearing in March next year, make a fresh application to Segara with a medical certificate in hand or go to the Court of Appeal.

Judge: You have an uphill task to convince me

EXCERPTS from the exchange between High Court judge Datuk K. N. Segara and Abdul Razak Baginda’s counsel, Wong Kian Kheong.

Wong: There are no reasonable grounds to hold Abdul Razak in prison as he is not guilty of the charge.
Segara: I want the facts, then you go into the law.

Wong: I’m going to read the sworn testimony of the applicant.
I (Abdul Razak) knew her (Altantuya) sometime in November 2004 and ended it in 2005. She extorted money from me, and I decided not to bow to her demands. But she harassed me through telephone calls and letters. I told my wife, other family members and my staff about her. I sought a lawyer’s advice, who told me to engage a private investigator (PI) to protect my family. I also sought the assistance of ASP Musa Safri, who introduced me to Azilah Hadri.
Segara: We will take into consideration what you have put in. But the conduct of the accused will be looked at from the abetment line.

Wong: Musa told Abdul Razak that a police officer will help, following a commotion caused by Altantuya outside the house on Oct 17. Abdul Razak met Azilah at his office on Oct 18.
Segara: Is this the normal conduct of a person who is being blackmailed?

Wong: Abdul Razak told Azilah not to do anything to Altantuya.
Segara: Did he approach the police? The conduct of the lawyer, the policeman and the accused are questionable because they did not deal with the authorities. But I am not saying the accused is guilty.

Wong: (Continues reading.) On Oct 19, the PI phoned me that Altantuya was outside my house. I asked Azilah for help.
Segara: Why him? Is he the person to ask for help? How is he going to admonish her? The applicant should have gone to the Inspector-General of Police or the OCPD for protection. Anyway, he has got his own security.

Wong: He wanted his family to be protected.
Segara: No, the accused wanted to protect himself. What’s his motive other than to get rid of her? So that he could sleep soundly after she disappears?

Wong: He did not ask him to kill her.
Segara: You are telling me that your client is not guilty and should be freed?

Wong: There is no reasonable grounds to believe that he committed the offence. My Lord, please draw an inference favourable to him.
Segara: He should not have created an embarrassing situation for the DPM. He should have gone to the IGP. If the victim had indeed blackmailed him, she would have been charged and by now would have been sent back home. She would not have died.

Wong: No embarrassment to the DPM. (Continues reading the affidavit.) On Oct 20, a man, claiming to be a police officer, and two women came to my house. The man abused and threatened to harm my family. I went to lodge a police report on Oct 23.
Segara: Was he receiving threats well after the murder?

Wong: No, even before that he had received threats.
Segara: As an intelligent person, don’t you think he did it ( lodged the report) to cover himself?

Wong: On Oct 31, my client made a statement to the police. He said he had an affair with the victim. He ended the relationship because he could not stand her harassment.
Segara: They should have gone to the hotel where she stayed to caution her. The matter would have been over on Oct 18. We have a situation of the applicant giving detailed instructions to Azilah.