Taiping prison’s chief inspector Ahmad Saiful Rafie, 45, said the incident was caused by provocation from 104 inmates who were transferred from the Batu Gajah correctional facility a day earlier.

On Jan 17, the inmates were supposed to be transferred from a hall to Block E of the prison, but they had refused to move, claiming that the block was squalid.

“If the inmates had fully cooperated, I think this incident would not have occurred,” he said at Suhakam’s public inquiry into the alleged abuse.

“I do not deny that there may have been some mistakes on the part of the prison personnel.

“But these inmates, who have been to prison several times, should know the rules and that they must comply with orders,” said Saiful, whose main duty is to oversee the registration and documentation of inmates.

Saiful described the “mistakes” of prison wardens as being unable to control their emotions after being provoked by the inmates by way of offensive gestures and verbal abuse.

He nonetheless agreed that officers must not at any time use unnecessary force on inmates. Saiful added that by the time he arrived at the hall, the incident was over.

The inmates were being held at the hall as they were still undergoing security screenings, including on their personal belongings.

Saiful said an officer by the name of Rizal had got into a stand-off with the same inmates the previous day. However, he was unsure if both incidents were linked.

He said the altercation on Jan 16 happened merely 30 minutes after the inmates arrived at Taiping prison while they were undergoing health and security screenings.

He said the inmates had provoked Rizal, who was involved in screening the detainees, and that the officer had failed to “control his emotions”. CCTV footage showed that Rizal had at one point spat at the inmates.

Saiful said he intervened and ordered Rizal to leave the hall, and the latter begrudgingly complied. Saiful acknowledged that Rizal’s actions were unbecoming of a prison officer.

“A prison officer should be able to keep his emotions in check,” he said.

Saiful said he could not clearly hear the heated exchange of words between Rizal and the inmates as it was very noisy. He also said his priority was to keep the situation under control.

“At the time, my perspective was that the situation would become uncontrollable if no action was taken, which could then lead to safety risks,” he said.

He added that he did not report the Jan 16 incident as it did not lead to any injuries, although he did make a note of it in his work diary, as part of prison SOPs.

Saiful said checks with other officers found that the inmates had refused to comply with Rizal’s orders during physical screenings and checks on their personal belongings.

There were claims that over 60 prison wardens had assaulted more than 100 prisoners in Taiping prison earlier this year.

Suhakam is probing the alleged violation of human rights, which is said to have resulted in the death of one inmate and injury to several others.

Suhakam chairman Hishamudin Yunus and commissioner Farah Nini Dusuki are on the panel holding the inquiry.