It has been one month since 62-year-old Gan Chin Eng (main image) died in Taiping Prison, Perak. Yet, his family are still in the dark about the circumstances surrounding his death.
The family are also wondering why it is taking such a long time for the authorities to investigate the case.
Gan’s 19-year-old son from Jelutong, Penang, who requested anonymity, was accompanied by his 65-year-old uncle to Twentytwo13‘s office in Kuala Lumpur on Monday (Feb 17). They are baffled as to why investigations into the case are taking such a long time.
“My statement was only recorded by the investigating officer at the Taiping police headquarters last Saturday (Feb 15),” said the son.
“I was told the case was still under investigation,” said the 19-year-old, a first-year dentistry student.
“It has been a month, but we have still not heard anything. No one from the Prisons Department nor the Home Ministry has reached out to our family since my father’s death,” he said.
Gan’s son, the youngest of three, said all his family wants is justice for his father, as there are discrepancies regarding the cause of his death.
Twentytwo13 was the first to highlight the incident on Jan 25. The article was written by Twentytwo13‘s columnist and criminologist, Datuk Dr P. Sundramoorthy.
On Jan 22, Gan’s son lodged a police report, claiming a post-mortem carried out on his father at the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital in Ipoh on Jan 19 revealed that Gan had died due to an “abdominal injury caused by blunt trauma”.
“On Jan 17, around 8pm, my family received a call from Taiping Prison, saying my father had been taken to Taiping Hospital and had died around 7pm that day. My family arrived at Taiping Hospital on Jan 18 to identify my father.
“We did not suspect anything amiss at that point. But after a post-mortem was carried out on Jan 19 at the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital in Ipoh, we learnt that my father had died due to an abdominal injury caused by blunt trauma.
“We also learnt that another detainee, who had appeared in court after the Jan 17 incident, had informed a court personnel that my father had been beaten up by a warden prior to his death. This led me to lodge a police report on Jan 22.”
On Jan 27, United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) claimed that over 100 detainees, the majority of whom had been transferred from the Batu Gajah correctional facility, had been beaten up by more than 60 prison wardens at Taiping Prison. The incident, according to Urimai chairman P. Ramasamy, led to Gan’s death.
Gan had been remanded at Taiping Prison since 2020 for a drug-related offence. His case was pending a court hearing when he died.
Gan’s son said he could not understand how anyone had the heart to beat up a 62-year-old.
“My father had not been found guilty by the court. He was merely a remand detainee. What right does anyone have to beat up a remand detainee?”
The 19-year-old’s uncle, S.M. Heng, said the family are in the dark over what had happened to Gan, who was his brother-in-law.
“Prior to his arrest, my brother-in-law was running a restaurant in Penang. The incident saddens us. There must be swift action,” said Heng.
“We have heard of other custodial deaths before, and I believe investigations shouldn’t take so long. We are wondering why there’s been no outcome regarding my brother-in-law’s death.
“My nephew is just a first-year student in college, and he has to go through this ordeal. Where is the justice?”
The family also filed an official complaint with the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) on Feb 17, urging it to launch a probe into Gan’s death.
On Feb 13, Suhakam accused the Prisons Department of obstructing its investigation into alleged human rights violations at Taiping Prison and Batu Gajah Correctional Centre.
Suhakam claimed that it had officially informed the Prisons Department of its intention to record a statement from an inmate at Batu Gajah Correctional Centre. However, upon arrival at the centre, Suhakam officers were allegedly denied access to the inmate.
Suhakam said they were informed by the Prisons Department that it must suspend the inquiry, pending the ongoing police investigation. Suhakam also said it was informed that its scheduled investigation visits to Taiping Prison from Feb 12 to 14 had also been cancelled for the same reason.
The commission said that in its 25 years, there had been many concurrent investigations by both Suhakam and the police on prisons, including custodial deaths, and there had never been any issues or problems regarding concurrent or overlapping investigations.
It claimed the Prisons Department’s retraction of the previously granted approval, along with the denial of access to the inmates, despite Suhakam officers’ presence at Batu Gajah Correctional Centre, were a violation of statutory duties, prejudicial in nature, and entirely unjustifiable.
On Feb 15, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail denied that the Home Ministry and the Prisons Department had “blocked” Suhakam’s meeting.
Saifuddin said the Prisons Department had set a date to allow Suhakam officers to visit Taiping Prison to probe Gan’s death. Saifuddin said the department’s commissioner-general had contacted two officers from Suhakam, to arrange for a meeting soon.
