Breaking silence, wife of slain Cradle CEO claims she has been kept in the dark over investigations and alleges discrepancies in probe.
- Fire and Rescue Dept claimed report could not be given to widow because it was a high profile case
- Personal belongings and items missing since incident
- Inconsistencies:
- Fire and Rescue Dept claimed took control of the room where the incident occurred from June 14 to 19 and produced a letter on the latter date which was backdated to the former date, but on June 14 the family was informed it could access the room as well as clean it
- Fire and Rescue Dept said traces of petrol found in Nazrin’s room, but post-mortem report made no mention of traces of petrol on the deceased’s head or any part of his body
- Nazrin was not on any medication as alleged, as post-mortem report confirms no drugs found in the deceased
The wife of Cradle Fund Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Nazrin Hassan has criticised the authorities investigating the death of her husband, saying that she has been kept in the dark about the investigations.
Samirah Muzaffar said that she had been writing to the Fire and Rescue Department requesting for updates, but was told that the report by the department could not be given to her because Nazrin’s death was a high profile case.
“I have been told by them that the report cannot be given to me because Nazrin’s death is a high profile case. I have again written to the Fire Department and appealed for a copy of the report.
“I am not aware of any provision in the law that denies the family of the victim, especially the next of kin, access to documents because of the status of the case,” she said.
She added that she also wanted information on certain missing items and personal belongings of Nazrin, which have not been seen since the incident.
She said that she had lodged police reports pertaining to the investigations and missing items since June.
Samirah also alleged that the Fire and Rescue Department had made claims which are patently untrue to the media, particularly that it had taken control of the premises, specifically the room where Nazrin’s death occurred, from June 14 to 19.
“After 5pm on the 14th of June itself, the family was informed that it could access the room as well as clean the said room. And yet, the Fire Department produced a letter on 19th June 2018 which was backdated to the 14th of June 2018.
“Acts of this sort which transgress established procedures erode our confidence in the authorities,” she said in a statement on Tuesday (Aug 14).
Samirah added that some media reports on the incident have not been consistent with the findings of the report on the postmortem examination issued by the Department of Forensic Medicine, Kuala Lumpur Hospital (HKL), on Aug 2.
She said the postmortem report stated that Nazrin sustained a blunt penetrating injury at the left parietal region and the wound was associated with a severe degree of head injury.
She added that it also stated that “multiple smaller blunt penetrating injuries of various sizes were found on his face, neck, chest, left shoulder and back of left hand bearing the pattern of shrapnel injuries”.
Samirah said the postmortem report concludes that the cause of death is “complication of blast and blunt penetrating injuries” and there was no mention of “traces of petrol on his head” or on any other part of Nazrin.
On August 6, the Malay Mail reported that lab results from the Selangor Fire and Rescue Department suggested foul play was involved in Nazrin’s murder, which was confirmed by a police source.
It said that there were traces of petrol found in Nazrin’s room that caught fire, found on his head, bedframe, mattress and his handphone.
Samirah rejected this, however, and insisted the post-mortem report made no mention of the accelerants.
She also stressed that her late husband was not on any form of medication, as suggested by various news reports.
“The laboratory analysis in the post-mortem report further confirms that no common drugs, volatile substances and/or alcohol were found in my late husband.
“The family and I have been more than cooperative with the authorities as we would like to see closure of the entire tragic episode,” she said.
“As most would know, my late husband, Nazrin Hassan, led his life with integrity, honesty and professionalism, and I seek that the investigations in relation to his death also be conducted with the highest standards of ethics, transparency and accountability,” she said.
The police had reclassified the probe as murder following a forensic investigation report by the Fire and Rescue Department, which cited suspected foul play in the death.
Nazrin died of what was initially believed to be smoke inhalation after his room caught fire at his double-storey terraced house in Mutiara Damansara.
The fire was thought to have occurred after his mobile phone exploded while charging.
Nazrin apparently complained of a migraine and went to bed after taking some medication.
Earlier reports:
Aug 6, Death of Cradle Chief in Fire Reclassified as Murder
Jun 15, Mobile Phone Explosion Blamed for Death of Cradle Fund CEO
Jun 14, Start-Up Fund Cradle CEO Dies in Home Fire