Azalina: Govt leaves door open to reopen Teoh Beng Hock case if new evidence surfaces

Azalina: Govt leaves door open to reopen Teoh Beng Hock case if new evidence surfaces



A photo of the late Teoh Beng Hock was seen together with the family after meeting the Prime Minister regarding his case here at Perdana Putra. — Picture by Sayuti Zainudin

Tuesday, 22 Jul 2025 1:44 PM MYT


KUALA LUMPUR, July 22 — The government has not closed the door on the possibility of reopening investigations into the death of Teoh Beng Hock, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said today.

She said criminal cases, unlike civil matters, are not bound by a statute of limitations, allowing authorities to revisit the case if new evidence surfaces in the future.


“If there are new developments, further investigations and reviews can still be carried out,” she said in a written parliamentary reply to Bagan MP Lim Guan Eng.

Lim had asked the government to state the reason the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) decided to classify the case as “No Further Action” (NFA), which he said has affected the government’s credibility, especially after the prime minister had previously ordered the case to be reopened.


He also asked what further action will be taken to deliver justice to the victim.


Azalina said the AGC had reached the NFA decision after reviewing the full body of evidence and finding no new material that met the legal threshold of proof beyond reasonable doubt.

She said the AGC’s decision was publicly explained in a statement dated May 22, 2025.


Azalina added that the Court of Appeal had previously overturned the coroner’s “open verdict” ruling on Teoh’s death in a judgment delivered on September 5, 2014.

Following that decision, the Royal Malaysia Police had set up a special investigation team to reopen the probe.

Teoh, who was a political aide to a Selangor state executive councillor, was found dead on July 16, 2009, after falling from the fifth floor of Plaza Masalam in Shah Alam following an overnight interrogation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) officers.

An inquest into his death returned an open verdict, but the 2014 Court of Appeal decision stated that Teoh’s death was caused by the actions of “one or more unknown persons,” including MACC officials.

Teoh’s sister, Teoh Lee Lan, has voiced her family’s disappointment with the outcome of the latest investigation.

After Pakatan Harapan’s 2018 electoral victory, the Cabinet agreed to reopen the case, and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim promised to conclude investigations within two years.

Two prior investigations in 2011 and 2015 were also classified as NFA. In 2023, the High Court ordered the police to complete the delayed investigation.

MACC chief Tan Sri Azam Baki issued an apology to Teoh’s family last Wednesday, on the 16th anniversary of his death, offering a goodwill contribution for the welfare and education of Teoh’s child.

Teoh’s family, however, rejected the monetary offer and instead demanded justice.