Pua, accompanied by his lawyer Lim Lip Eng, arrived at the Bukit Aman police headquarters this morning before the police took him to his office in Damansara Utama to collect his mobile phone.
Lim said police detained Pua for more than an hour, saying the DAP MP was informed he was “under custody” until he handed over his mobile phone.
The clip, titled “BN abandons all Bills to give precedence to PAS RUU355 Private Member’s Bill”, was uploaded on Pua’s Facebook page.
But Lim said as it was a live event, a recording of the video clip was not retained on Pua’s mobile phone.
“Maybe (the clip is) in the Facebook server. Maybe in Singapore or the US. (But) there is nothing on the handphone as soon as the recording ends.”
Lim, who is also Segambut MP, said Pua was being investigated under Section 500 of the Criminal Defamation Penal Code, which carries a maximum sentence of two years’ imprisonment upon conviction.
He said the police refused to reveal the identity of the person who lodged the report against Pua.
Last Friday, Prime Minister Najib Razak had filed a civil suit against Pua, two weeks after the DAP leader refused to apologise over the video, which was uploaded shortly after PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang tabled his motion in the Dewan Rakyat to amend the Syariah Court (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965.
Najib said the video was malicious and was intended to defame him, and sought general, aggravated and exemplary damages as well as an injunction to prevent Pua or his agents from publishing further statements.
Pua later told reporters that his mobile phone was taken as part of their standard operating procedure.
He said the police should also investigate Najib over the 1MDB scandal.
“I have no problems if they investigate me on my statement. But the police need to investigate Najib and 1MDB which has been reported worldwide.”