He said police would not issue a media statement without the backing of facts and information, and that anyone who felt he was inaccurate or interfering with the investigation could take legal action.

“If you feel I’m wrong, sue me. Don’t just talk,” he said.

On Dec 13, lawyer Rajesh Nagarajan, representing the families of the three men, said that the marital status or criminal record of people linked to the case was irrelevant, after Dzulkhairi said a woman had falsely claimed that one of the men was her husband.

Dzulkhairi said the woman, who recorded an audio clip of the incident, had been living with the man for three years, and had a record of 10 cases related to criminal offences since 2012.

Rajesh said Dzulkhairi’s comments were a “disgraceful and deliberate” diversion, and that whether the woman was legally married or had a prior record had “no bearing whatsoever on the legality, necessity or proportionality of the use of lethal force by police”.

Yesterday, the Star reported Rajesh as also denying that the woman had a police record. He said while she had given statements for several investigations, she had never been convicted.

However, Dzulkhairi stood by his statement, saying all arrests remained recorded even if they do not lead to charges in court.

“He said the person was never arrested. If she was never arrested, how do police have arrest records? There are 10 records of her arrests.

“If it’s just a statement being taken, it is not entered into the records. We have people called in if we suspect their involvement in certain cases,” he said.