The murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu, which rocked Malaysian politics more than a decade ago, came back to haunt tainted former prime minister Najib Razak on Monday. The latest revelation from the death row, with the convicted police officer revealing that the order to kill the Mongolian national came directly from Najib.
Najib, who is facing graft charges in the multi-billion dollar 1MDB scandal, immediately distanced himself from the case, saying the charges were baseless.
The convicted killer of Altantuya, ex-officer Azilah Hadri said the order to kill her came from Najib Abdul Razak and his aide Abdul Razak Baginda. Hadri is in Kajang Prison, awaiting capital punishment. He said in his shocking statutory declaration that he was simply following an explicit "shoot to kill" order from Najib, Malaysiakini reported.
Azilah Hadri said in his declaration that he was ordered by Najib on October 17, 2006 to kill the woman, who he was told was a foreign spy. Najib, who was deputy prime minister and defence minister at that time, also ordered him to destroy the body of the victim.
"When asked what was meant by destroying that foreign spy's body, DPM answered 'Destroy the foreign spy's body to get rid of traces.' After discussing methods to destroy the body, DPM ordered me to blow up that foreign spy's body using explosives," Azilah said in his statutory declaration, Malaysiakini reported.
Najib denied the charges on Monday. "This is a complete fabrication by a desperate person seeking to escape the gallows," he told the newspaper. He also asked why the revelation came more than 10 years after the murder.
What is the case?
Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu was killed on 18 October 2006. The crime took place in a deserted area in Shah Alam, near Kuala Lumpur. Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar were convicted of the murder and handed the death penalty. Abdul Razak Baginda, a close associate of Najib Razak, was acquitted.
Though Sirul and Azilah were acquitted by the Court of Appeal in August 2013, a Federal Court overturned the acquittal of both individuals following public outcry over their acquittal.
Who was Altantuyaa?
Altantuyaa, who was born in 1978, was raised in the Soviet Union along with her sister. Her father is Dr Shaariibuu Setev. She married Mongolian techno singer Maadai in the early 1990s and had a child with him. The marriage failed in the mid-90s, and the couple divorced.
Model or translator?
Some sections in the media have said she was a model, a claim her mother denied. However, it is documented that she did work as a translator. Altantuyaa was reportedly fluent in languages like in Mongolian, Russian, Chinese, English and French.
What is the Najib connection?
According to reports, Altantuyaa had a relationship wit Abdul Razak Baginda, a defence analyst from the Malaysian Strategic Research Centre. Baginda, a close friend of Najib, apparently introduced her to the tainted former prime minister. Local reports had said Altantuyaa had travelled with Baginda in 2005 when he went to France for negotiations for the purchase of Scorpène submarines from France.
Information on graft led to her death?
French newspaper Liberation had reported that Altantuyaa knew about a huge payout of bribe over the Scorpene submarine deal. French company Armaris had allegedly paid more than a billion euro and the payment was received by a company allegedly controlled by Najib. Correspondence allegedly establishing her role in the graft cover-up was found after Altantuyaa's death. The letter allegedly written by her showed that she had been blackmailing Baginda, apparently demanding $500,000 in lieu of being silent about the corruption.
The murder
Altantuyaa went missing on 19 October 2006. Upon earth, the Malaysian police discovered fragments of bone which were later established as belonging to Altantuyaa. it was later established that she was shot twice and that her body was destroyed using C-4 explosives PETN and RDX. Further investigation led to the arrest of Chief police Inspector Azilah Hadri and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar. The officers belonged to Malaysian Police Special Action Force.
