‘Insufficient evidence’ unacceptable in Teoh Beng Hock NFA, says lawyer

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‘Insufficient evidence’ unacceptable in Teoh Beng Hock NFA, says lawyer


Ramkarpal Singh says the attorney-general’s claim of ‘insufficient evidence’ does little to address the family’s concerns about how the investigations were carried out

Teoh Beng Hock died on July 16, 2009 at the fifth floor of Plaza Masalam, Shah Alam, after being questioned for hours by MACC.

PETALING JAYA: Attorney-General Dusuki Mokhtar must provide greater transparency into the Attorney-General’s Chambers’ (AGC) decision to classify the investigation into Teoh Beng Hock’s death as requiring no further action or NFA, said Bukit Gelugor MP Ramkarpal Singh, who is also the family’s legal representative.

In a statement today, Ramkarpal stressed that the AG’s claim of “insufficient evidence” does little to address the family’s long-standing concerns about the quality and thoroughness of the investigations.

“It is disappointing that the AG came to the conclusion that there is insufficient evidence,” he said.


“The AG should disclose further details of his findings, particularly on the question of why he says there is insufficient evidence.

“A general statement to that effect does not, in any way, overcome the family’s real concerns that such investigations were not properly and professionally conducted.”


The statement follows a letter dated May 30 from Dusuki seeking to explain the AGC’s rationale for classifying the case as NFA.

Teoh died on July 16, 2009 at the fifth floor of Plaza Masalam, Shah Alam, after being questioned for hours by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

An inquest into his death was held and the coroner returned an open verdict.

However, the Court of Appeal in 2014 ruled that Teoh’s death was caused by “one or more persons unknown”, including MACC officers.


In 2019, police launched an investigation under Section 342 of the Penal Code for wrongful confinement.

Prior to 2018, two special investigation teams were set up – one in 2011 and the other in 2015 – to look into Teoh’s death, but both cases were classified as NFA by the public prosecutor.

Ramkarpal noted that the AG’s justification appeared to rest on a technical distinction – that the Court of Appeal’s findings were based on civil, not criminal, standards – and argued that this reasoning is deeply unsatisfactory after over a decade of investigations.

He confirmed that Teoh’s family is considering a judicial review of the AG’s decision and will announce their next steps soon.


Teoh’s family has long called for accountability and has expressed frustration with repeated delays and lack of resolution in the case.