PETALING JAYA: A disabled e-hailing driver has said that “a representative from the Istana” was present at the police station when he was filing a complaint. A VIP bodyguard allegedly assaulted him on May 28.
Victim Ong Ing Keong said at a press conference held at the Lawyers for Liberty’s (LFL) office that he could not identify which palace the representative was from.
Incident at St Regis Hotel
He said the incident took place on May 28 while he was picking up passengers at the lobby of the St Regis Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.
“When I was opening the car boot, I noticed flashing police lights and was asked to move. I was uncomfortable because my customers weren’t in the car yet and asked if I could wait there.”
“After the customers got in, as I was taking off, I saw a hand coming towards me and punching my right cheek,” Ong said through sign language interpreter Lucy Lim.
Ong and Anthony Chong, the co-founder of Ong and Malaysian Deaf Advocacy and Well-Being National Organisation, re-enacted the attack.
Police Complaint and Palace Representative
When the victim was at Brickfields police headquarters to file a complaint about the incident, he was asked to submit dashcam footage and the officer who kept mum for a long time before passing the video on to other officers.
Ong said, a man appeared at the station and he was told that he was a palace representative.
“The representative told me I have two choices, either take the compensation or proceed with the matter which will result in the confiscation of my phone.”
As he needs the phone for work and to communicate with family, Ong said he accepted the compensation offer under duress.
Medical Attention and Legal Response
He said he sought medical attention after the attack and was left with red eyes, swollen lips and pain in his jaw when chewing food.
LFL adviser Latheefa Koya, who was also present at the press conference, said statements made by the police to the press to resolve the case were false.
Latheefa said that the police had contacted Ong and that he would be present at Brickfields police station to record his statement.