SHAH ALAM, 15 Jan 2009: Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri told the High Court here today that “the Chinese woman” was with Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar on the day Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu was murdered.
Making his defence under oath, Azilah who is the first accused in the murder trial, referred to the victim as “the Chinese woman”.
He and Sirul, who are both Special Action Unit (UTK) operatives of the police, were charged with murdering the 28-year-old woman in Mukim Bukit Raja between 10pm on 19 Oct 2006 and 1am the next day.
On 31 Oct 2008, the court acquitted and discharged political analyst Abdul Razak Abdullah Baginda, without calling for his defence, of abetting them in Kuala Lumpur between 9.54am on 18 Oct 2006 and 9.45pm the following day.
Azilah said the last time he saw the “Chinese woman” was when she got into Sirul’s four-wheel drive vehicle, and they left Bukit Aman together.
At that time, he was with his girlfriend Lance Corporal Rohaniza Roslan at the car park after he managed to persuade the “Chinese woman” to stop harassing Razak Baginda, and return to her hotel.
Azilah, 32, said the “Chinese woman” had agreed to get into Sirul’s vehicle after he told her that he could send her to Hotel Malaya because Rohaniza had to go to Petaling Jaya.
Earlier, he said he and Rohaniza had taken the “Chinese woman” to Bukit Aman in a car and they followed Sirul’s vehicle after finding the “Chinese woman” at Razak Baginda’s house.
At Razak Baginda’s house, he said, the “Chinese woman” got into his car without him telling her to do so.
When lawyer Datuk Hazman Ahmad asked Azilah why he brought along the woman, he said: “Because Razak Baginda had from the start asked me to advise the ‘Chinese woman’ and take her back to her hotel because she would create a disturbance in front of his house.”
Azilah said on the night of the murder, he was with Rohaniza and his fiancee Nur Azila Baharuddin at different time and places.
First, he met Rohaniza to break fast and after that, they went to the UTK office to pack his things as his assignment to Hong Kong had been cancelled.
On the same night, the two of them went to Razak Baginda’s house after the political analyst contacted him to seek his help because the “Chinese woman” had created a commotion in front of the house.
“At the office, I told Rohaniza to wait at the office because I would not be long but Rohaniza said she wanted to follow. At the time, I thought it was better for Rohaniza to follow me because I was to meet a woman,” he said.
Azilah said he saw Nor Azila at about 10.30pm to discuss their marriage and then they had dinner together at Wangsa Maju.
About 45 minutes later, he said, Nor Azila sent him to Bukit Aman and he met Rohaniza again. Rohaniza was waiting for him at the UTK office after returning from Petaling Jaya.
“Rohaniza then asked me to drive her car to Putrajaya and upon reaching Putrajaya, I went straight to the UTK transit house at Presint 8. There, I saw Che Kamaruzzaman lying in the living room,” he said.
Azilah said he went to Putrajaya to replace ASP Azani Omar for the assignment of escorting the deputy prime minister the following day.
The hearing before Justice Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin continues tomorrow. — Bernama
