Movida owner sings different tune following lawsuit threat
FMT Reporters | June 29, 2016
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Roger Hew is now saying it is best to leave the authorities to ascertain the cause of the grenade attack at his nightspot.
PETALING JAYA: Just a day after alleging on Facebook that an Indian couple was the reason behind the Puchong grenade attack early yesterday morning, Movida bar owner Roger Hew is now denying he was playing the blame game with his earlier post.This comes hours after FMT ran an interview with one of the victims injured in yesterday’s blast, S Jaiseelan, who threatened to take legal action against Hew for implying the attack was targeted towards him and his wife.
Jaiseelan said he and his wife were the only “Indian couple” that fit Hew’s description at the premises when the attack occurred.
In his posting yesterday, Hew had said: “…preliminary investigations of the incident showed that it involved two patrons, an Indian couple, who were targeted due to personal matters”. Hew also claimed an eyewitness saw two Indian men throwing an explosive towards the said couple.
This differed from the version given by the victim himself, who said the grenade hit a Chinese man seated two tables away from him and his wife, before exploding.
Today however, Hew offered a different take on the matter.
When a netizen shared FMT’s interview with Jaiseelan on Hew’s Facebook wall, he responded by saying he had only posted an update of the incident “without prejudice” based on preliminary investigations between the bar management and the police.
“No one is accusing anyone until the police can some up (sic) with confirm details.”
He said the purpose of him putting up the first post was to “update friends on the matter” and said they would await updates from the authorities.
A check by FMT found that Hew has now changed the privacy settings of the two postings mentioned above, but not before screenshots of it had been snapped.
FMT also gathers that Jaiseelan’s brother Kavilan has lodged a police report against Hew, as of the time this article was written.
Jaiseelan and Bavani, both 32, were celebrating their second wedding anniversary at the Movida bar about 1.30am yesterday when a hand grenade was lobbed towards the premises, injuring eight after exploding.
Police are looking at several angles in their probe into the attack, including business rivalry, a personal dispute, and whether it was the work of a terror group.
A member of the self-styled Islamic State (Isis) has also reportedly claimed they were responsible for the attack, as it was aimed at those engaged in vice activities during the holy month of Ramadan.
This differed from the version given by the victim himself, who said the grenade hit a Chinese man seated two tables away from him and his wife, before exploding.
Today however, Hew offered a different take on the matter.
When a netizen shared FMT’s interview with Jaiseelan on Hew’s Facebook wall, he responded by saying he had only posted an update of the incident “without prejudice” based on preliminary investigations between the bar management and the police.
“No one is accusing anyone until the police can some up (sic) with confirm details.”
He said the purpose of him putting up the first post was to “update friends on the matter” and said they would await updates from the authorities.
A check by FMT found that Hew has now changed the privacy settings of the two postings mentioned above, but not before screenshots of it had been snapped.
FMT also gathers that Jaiseelan’s brother Kavilan has lodged a police report against Hew, as of the time this article was written.
Jaiseelan and Bavani, both 32, were celebrating their second wedding anniversary at the Movida bar about 1.30am yesterday when a hand grenade was lobbed towards the premises, injuring eight after exploding.
Police are looking at several angles in their probe into the attack, including business rivalry, a personal dispute, and whether it was the work of a terror group.
A member of the self-styled Islamic State (Isis) has also reportedly claimed they were responsible for the attack, as it was aimed at those engaged in vice activities during the holy month of Ramadan.
