YUSOFF RAWTHER UNABLE TO OPEN DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR DURING RAID, SAYS WITNESS

KUALA LUMPUR, April 9 (Bernama) -- The High Court was informed today that Muhammed Yusoff Rawther could not open the driver's side door of his Nissan Teana during a police raid at Bukit Kiara, where a black bag containing two fake firearms and lumps of drugs were found inside the car. 

Insp Wan Muhammad Wan Ali, 37, of the Kuala Lumpur Police Contingent, Special Investigation Division (D9), testified that the accused could only open the front passenger door manually using a key.

"During the raid led by me at 9.25 am on Sept 6, 2024, I detained the accused while he was approaching the vehicle and instructed him to open the car door. He repeatedly pressed the remote control but couldn’t open the door.

"I then instructed another officer to try opening another door while the accused continued pressing the remote control, but none of them could be opened. I directed him to use the key to open the door manually, but despite many attempts to pull open the driver's door, it remained locked.

"So I instructed the accused to open the front passenger door. Eventually, the door was opened. He entered the dark blue vehicle and opened the driver's side door from the inside when asked to do so," he said.

The first prosecution witness made this statement during the examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Mohd Sabri Othman during the trial of former political research assistant Muhammed Yusoff Rawther, who is facing charges of drug trafficking and possession of fake firearms. 

Previously, Wan Muhammad informed the court that a black bag containing two firearms was found under the front passenger seat during his search of the vehicle near a condominium.

Additionally, compressed lumps believed to be cannabis were found under the back seat during further inspection in the parking area of the KL police contingent surau. 

Meanwhile, Wan Muhammad agreed with the suggestion made by defence counsel Muhammad Rafique Rashid Ali that the remote control was not functioning when the accused approached the vehicle during the raid.

He also confirmed that the accused had repeatedly pressed the remote in an attempt to open the door. 

Muhammad Rafique: So, you instructed other officers to try opening the door?

Wan Muhammad: Yes, while the accused was using the remote control.

The witness also agreed with the defence counsel that three other doors could not be opened by the officers, despite their attempts to pull them open.

Meanwhile, Cpl Amirul Azwa Zahari, 38, an officer with the Kuala Lumpur Police Contingent, Special Investigation Division (D9), agreed with the defence counsel that the accused appeared calm during the raid and his arrest the following day. 

The sixth prosecution witness also concurred with the defence's assertion that the accused made no attempt to flee during the raid, nor was there any struggle or verbal abuse when he was detained. 

Before the proceedings commenced, Judge Datuk Muhammad Jamil Hussin, accompanied by the court interpreter and staff, conducted an inspection of the Nissan Teana, which was parked in the basement level of the Kuala Lumpur Court Complex, in the presence of the prosecution team and defence counsel.

The handcuffed accused was also escorted by police to observe a demonstration conducted by Wan Muhammad, showing how the drugs and fake firearms were discovered in the vehicle.

Muhammed Yusoff is accused of trafficking 305 grammes of cannabis found in the vehicle he was in near the surau at the police contingent headquarters at 10.15 am on Sept 6, 2024.

He was charged under Section 39B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, which carries the death penalty or imprisonment of between 30 and 40 years and a minimum of 12 strokes of the cane upon conviction. 

He was also charged with possession of two fake firearms near a condominium on Jalan Bukit Kiara at 9.25 am on Sept 6, 2024, under Section 36(1) of the Firearms Act 1960, which provides for a maximum penalty of one year in prison or a fine not exceeding RM5,000, or both, upon conviction.

The trial will resume tomorrow.

-- BERNAMA