His son, Rosli, 60, said Rahman died at 8.15am after being hospitalised since early December.

“He was supposed to come home tomorrow but Allah loves him more,” he told reporters at Masjid Bukit Aman here today.

The funeral prayers were held at Masjid Bukit Aman after zohor prayers and Rahman was laid to rest at the Bukit Kiara Muslim cemetery at 4.45pm.

Inspector-General of Police Mohamad Fuzi Harun described Rahman’s death as the loss of an individual who had made a huge contribution to the force.

He said that even after his retirement in 1985, Rahman continued to lend his expertise in criminal issues.

He said Rahman frequently shared his views and experiences with the young generation of Bukit Aman and told him that investigating officers needed to be exposed to intensive training to gain greater investigation skills.

Rahman was appointed as the deputy IGP in December 1983 until his retirement at the age of 55 in August 1985.

He had previously served as the director of the Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department, as a state police chief, and held several key posts in the police force.

Rahman, who hailed from Alor Setar, is survived by a son, three daughters and 12 grandchildren.