We don't know exactly how Pastor Raymond Koh's family feels about the police, especially after revelations that certain officers were implicated in his disappearance eight years ago. But one thing is clear: the family still holds hope in at least two individuals within the police force.
The first cop that the family have been on record to show their trust and hope on is a special branch officer Special Branch member Shamzaini Daud, whose decision to “come clean and tell the truth” helped expose alleged police involvement in the enforced disappearances of both Pastor Koh and activist Amri Che Mat. They praised Shamzaini for enabling them to gather crucial evidence against officers allegedly responsible for these abductions.
“We hope individuals of integrity like Sergeant Shamzaini will be protected, as they are a bastion of truth in today’s fast, morally decrepit world.” The family of Pastor Raymond Koh, made a heartfelt plea to the government just last month, after the high court ordered the police and the govemrent to pay Pastor Koh’s family RM 37 million for involvement in his adbduction and disappearance.
Other than Pastor Koh’s family. The High Court also directed the government to compensate Amri’s family with more than RM3 million for failing to properly investigate his disappearance. During Amri’s trial, the court heard that Shamzaini had informed Amri’s wife, Norhayati Ariffin, that police officers were allegedly involved in her husband’s disappearance, and that the same group was implicated in Pastor Koh’s abduction the following year.
Following the ruling, Pastor Koh’s family welcomed the judgment as “honest and fair,” stating that it validated not only their suffering but that of all victims of enforced disappearances. They reiterated calls for the government to act on the findings of Suhakam, the special task force, and now the High Court, by establishing a royal commission of inquiry to investigate all individuals named in these reports. They also called for a new police task force, separate from the Special Branch, to locate Saiful Bahari Abdul Aziz, identified by the task force as the main suspect.
The family expressed shock at the Attorney-General’s announcement of plans to appeal even before the full written judgment was released. “It is baffling that neither the Cabinet nor the Attorney-General took any action despite their own commissioned report clearly stating that police officers were involved,” they said.
In the meantime, in their continuous effort to locate the missing Pastor Koh, the family has now turned their hopes to Deputy Inspector-General of Police Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay, whom Pastor Koh’s wife, Susanna Liew, has requested to lead the reopened investigation into her husband’s disappearance. In a letter to Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, she emphasized that appointing Ayob Khan would reflect the government’s commitment to a fair, transparent, and independent investigation.
“He is known among members of the public as a person of integrity and honesty,” Liew said. “We have confidence that he won’t be intimidated or frightened to do what is just and right, despite high-ranking police officers being involved.”
Her request follows the High Court ruling on Nov 5, which ordered police to reopen investigations into both Koh’s and Amri’s abductions and determine Koh’s whereabouts. Liew thanked Saifuddin for affirming that the police would comply with the court’s directives, saying it gave her family a “long-awaited sense of hope after years of pain and unanswered questions.”
Pastor Koh was abducted in Petaling Jaya in February 2017 by a convoy of men in vehicles. Suhakam later concluded that police personnel carried out the abduction, while Amri, a Perlis-based social activist, went missing in November 2016.
With the High Court judgment and the family’s backing of Shamzaini and Ayob Khan, there is renewed hope that justice for Pastor Koh may finally be within reach, and that those responsible for these enforced disappearances will be held accountable.
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