Speaking to FMT, Abdul Samah said he had also formed a special task force to investigate any alleged misconduct of his men which might have led to Bala’s death while in their custody.
“We are investigating the officers involved.
“It (the task force) was formed to thoroughly probe the alleged misconduct, and if it’s proven that the officers were wrong, then we will decide on the necessary course of action.”
Bala, 44, died on Feb 8 while in police custody. According to news reports, he was found with his face badly swollen and bleeding.
It was also reported that the deceased’s mouth was bleeding and that he had vomited blood when taken to the court for the remand hearing on Tuesday.
Bala’s body is still at Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah (HTAR) Klang. His family will only collect his remains once the second round of post-mortem is complete.
Yesterday, Bala’s brother, Balaraj, filed a report urging the police to conduct an investigation over the custodial death, and asking for the officers involved to be suspended.
But, according to Abdul Samah, the officers are still on duty. He said suspending them would not be possible.
“We are still investigating (them). We can’t punish a person before we complete the investigation to determine if there was any wrongdoing.”
He added that the report of the probe would be handed over to Bukit Aman police headquarters, and that Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar would be informed of any development.
He, however, refused to tell FMT the number of officers who have been called in for questioning, or their positions in the force.
“All the officers involved, witnesses and others from the police force have been called in, and there are also others who will be called in (later).
“We need some time to investigate (the case).”
Abdul Samah said the police viewed the matter seriously and promised Bala’s family and the public that they would act appropriately.
Yesterday the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) said it would conduct an immediate investigation into the death of Bala, and that it too had formed a special task force in line with Section 17 of the EAIC Act 2009 (Act 700).
“The investigation is to identify whether there is any misconduct as provided under Section 24 of Act 700, including treatment of crime by police officers when handling prisoners,” said EAIC chairman Yaacob Md Sam.
Bala was detained by North Klang police on Monday. His family said no reason was given for the arrest.