A Malaysian opposition activist may have been strangled and assaulted before he plunged to his death outside the office of the country’s anti-corruption agency, Thailand’s top criminal forensics expert told a coroner’s inquest yesterday.
Pornthip Rojanasunand, who heads the Thai Central Institute of Forensic Science, said there was an 80 percent chance that Teoh Beng Hock’s death was a homicide as some injuries on his body were inconsistent with a fall from a high place. Her testimony at the inquest shed new light on Teoh’s death as it contrasted with evidence given by two Malaysian government pathologists, who claimed Teoh had most likely committed suicide, said Gobind Singh Deo, a lawyer for Teoh’s family.
“Many significant features on Teoh’s death have been left out by the two other pathologists. This to a very great extent eliminates the theory that Teoh committed suicide. Given her evidence, it’s quite clear that it’s homicide,” he said.
Teoh, an aide to an opposition legislator in central Selangor state, was found dead on the roof of a building next to the office of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission on July 16, a day after he was summoned for a probe into alleged misuse of state funds by state lawmakers.
Thousands of opposition supporters have staged peaceful rallies accusing the commission of causing Teoh’s death. Commission officials have denied responsibility, saying Teoh died after he was released from questioning.
The government launched the inquest into Teoh’s death in early August and said it would also examine the commission’s overall investigative methods to determine whether they have violated human rights. Accusations of police brutality against suspects in interrogation have been frequent in recent years, and some opposition activists say this has extended to the anti-graft agency as well.
Pornthip, who gained prominence in her work to help identify the remains of Asian tsunami victims in 2004, was engaged as an expert witness by Teoh’s family and the Selangor government.
Based on autopsy reports and photos taken from the site where he died, Pornthip told the inquest that marks around Teoh’s neck showed he may have been strangled while injury to his anus was caused by penetration with an object before his fall. His skull fracture was also not typical of an injury from a fall but more compatible with being struck by a blunt force, she said.
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