PUTRAJAYA (Oct 10): Dr Shaariibuu Setev, the father of slain Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu, has affirmed a letter to support a motion by former chief inspector Azilah Hadri, the murderer, to commute his death sentence to life imprisonment.
Shaariibuu affirmed a letter in the Mongolian language, which was translated in support of Azilah’s review application.
This is the second time in Malaysia that a victim's family member supports the murderer's review to reduce the death sentence to 30-45 years in prison with 12 strokes of the rotan.
(The first time was for another murder case, in Sabah, which had been heard earlier.)
Shaariibuu’s lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo sought leave from the three-member bench led by Chief Justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat earlier, to hold a watching brief in the matter and gave the letter to the bench.
The letter by Shaariibuu was read by Azilah’s lawyer J Kuldeep Kumar, who submitted the letter in Thursday's proceedings.
Tengku Maimun sat with Court of Appeal President Tan Sri Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim and Federal Court judge Datuk Nordin Hassan in the proceedings.
Azilah, 48, was sentenced to death along with former corporal Sirul Azhar Umar by the Federal Court on Jan 13, 2015, for murdering Altantuya in the early morning of Oct 19, 2006, at the top of a forested hill in Puncak Alam, Selangor.
The two were initially found guilty of murdering Altantuya, while political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda was acquitted by Shah Alam High Court judge Datuk Mohd Zaki Yasin.
However, the duo were then unanimously acquitted by a three-member Court of Appeal bench led by Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali, where Tengku Maimun wrote the judgement in freeing them on Aug 23, 2013.
In a turn of events, a five-member bench led by then CJ Tun Arifin Zakaria unanimously reversed the appellate court's decision in 2015, resulting in Azilah facing the death sentence, while Sirul had already left the country for Australia, where he was detained under Australian immigration law until his release there late last year.
Azilah has already served a total 16 years and three months' imprisonment, since he was remanded in 2006 and his release in 2013 following the acquittal, and then re-convicted by the apex court and re-imprisoned in 2015 until now.
In Shaariibuu’s letter, the victim's father wrote to formally request a commutation of Azilah’s death sentence to life imprisonment.
“Azilah was sentenced to death for the murder of Altantuya, a citizen of Mongolia. It is crucial to recognise that the United Nations declares the sanctity of life, emphasising that all beings on this planet have a right to existence. My request stems from a deep respect for the humanity of Mongolians.
“Furthermore, I urge a prompt resolution to the civil suits that have been pending for many years. Additionally, I ask you to convey the relevance of this request to Sirul, who co-perpetrated this tragic case, as well as to his lawyer, the court, the prosecutor’s office, and the government. Let us honour the virtues of humanity and uphold truthful expression in every nation,” the father wrote in the letter that was translated.
While the prosecution had indicated that they were objecting to the commutation of the death penalty to life imprisonment, they were not disputing the contents of the letter.
Shaariibuu had filed a civil suit in 2007, against Azilah, Sirul, Abdul Razak, and the government, and in December 2022, the Shah Alam High Court found all of them to be liable for Altantuya’s death, and awarded damages of RM5 million.
However, the matter is still pending appeal by Abdul Razak and the government, and the sum of damages could go up to RM9.261 million, as Shaariibuu wants to enforce judgement debtors on Abdul Razak, as reported last month.
Corrigendum: It was initially reported that Shaariibuu's letter is the first time a murder victim's family has supported a murderer's review application. However, that precedent goes to an earlier case, in Sabah.
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