Sirul apologizes to Altantuya's family, pleads to stay in Australia
November 24, 2023
Sirul apologizes to Altantuya's family, pleads to stay in Australia
Sirul apologized to Altantuya's family and asked for their forgiveness.
KUALA LUMPUR: Former member of the Special Action Unit (UTK), Sirul Azhar Umar, who is facing the death penalty for the murder of a Mongolian citizen, Altantuya Shaariibuu, appealed to continue his life in Australia.
In an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera English's 101 East that aired on Friday, Sirul claimed that it was dangerous for him to return to Malaysia.
Sirul also at the same time apologized to the family of the late Altantuya and asked for their forgiveness.
He claimed not to be responsible for the murder despite being convicted by the highest court in Malaysia.
Sirul claimed that he had been made a scapegoat and was caught in a political game in addition to admitting to receiving RM1 million while in Australia from an unnamed source to "shut up his mouth."
In addition, Sirul also made some serious allegations that have not been confirmed against some leading personalities.
"I appeal to the community here (Australia) to accept me.
"I promised my son that I will never break the law here. I (will) follow everything. I realize that it is really not safe for me to go back there (Malaysia). Whatever happens, I want build a life with my son in Australia. I hope the Australian community accepts me (for) who I am. I'm not a bad person.
"I love Australia, from my heart, from my soul. Give me a second chance. One more thing. I will apologize to the Altantuya family. Please forgive me. That's it," he said in his first interview since his release two weeks ago from the Villawood immigration detention center in Sydney.
Sirul was among dozens of immigration detainees released after Australia's High Court ruled that indefinite immigration detention was unlawful.
That overturned a 2004 ruling that non-citizens without visas could be detained indefinitely provided the government intended to remove them as soon as possible.
Sirul said that the day after his release, a Malaysian police officer met him to inform him that Australia's Minister of Foreign Affairs had contacted the Malaysian High Commission to ask if he was safe in Canberra.
"They told me that I was safe. But I'm really upset, look at the news, everything is bad about me. So, the community here is really afraid of me. (They think) Sirul is dangerous," he said again.
Australia will not deport Sirul to Malaysia because the country's law does not allow all those facing the death penalty to be repatriated to their country of origin.
Altantuya was shot in the head in 2006 in a forest area in Puncak Alam, Selangor. His body was then detonated with explosives.
Sirul and former Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri, were convicted in 2009 by the High Court for killing Altantuya.
Azilah is now sentenced to death in Kajang Prison.
They successfully overturned the conviction at the Court of Appeal in 2013, but the Federal Court in 2015 overturned the conviction and sentenced them to death.
Sirul fled to Australia before the final result.
He has been held at the detention center since 2015 after being arrested by Australian police. His first application for political asylum in Australia was rejected in 2019.
Following an exclusive interview on the 101 East program, senior journalist Mary Ann Jolley has followed the case and published several exclusive series.
He won an award in investigative reporting in 2015 through the episode "Murder In Malaysia" and in 2019 through the episode "Malaysia: Power and Corruption" where both episodes have garnered millions of views globally.
The latest exclusive interview was broadcast on Al Jazeera English at 7.30 this morning Malaysian time and will be rebroadcast at 5.30 this afternoon, 12.30 noon tomorrow (Saturday) and 8.30 pm on Sunday
