Beaten and robbed by cops over expired road tax
The businessman, who is frame-maker, narrated the "horrific" incident today, saying that the police bashed him up, threatened and robbed him of RM13,000 in cash he was carrying - all for the expired road tax of his wife's car that he was driving.
Chia's (left) nightmare began about 11pm on Dec 18, as he was driving from his house in Tropicana to Kota Damansara, where traffic police had set up roadblocks. Having spotted the expired road tax, one of the police officers asked for his driver's licence and identification card.
It was then, he said, that the officer spotted stacks of RM50 notes, totalling RM7,000, sticking out of his pocket and demanded that he hand them over.
Chia said he refused and insisted he be issued with a summons but as the officer kept asking for the money, Chia warned that he would lodge a report. Then the assaults began.
"I tried to take his picture with my mobile phone, but I was repeatedly punched by him and two other officers.
"One of them then handcuffed me and I screamed for help (but) I was shoved inside a police car and beaten again," he said, adding that there were several witnesses to this, including a security guard and a friend of his who was in another car.
Chia said he was carrying a total of RM18,000 that he had collected from his three frame-making shops that night, with RM10,000 in his pockets and RM8,000 in the car.
'My money was thrown into the toilet'
The father of two said he was then taken to the police station in Kota Damansara and again assaulted.
"I was outside a toilet at the station and seven officers kicked and stepped on me until I vomited blood and sustained injuries on my face."Then, one police officer took the RM7,000 from my front pocket and RM3,000 from my back pocket and they threw it on the floor."
"He (the officer) became angry when I demanded the money be returned and he threw the remainder he was holding into the toilet and hit me again."
Chia said the police then ordered him to write a report that his sustained the injuries in a traffic accident and when he refused, they threatened to plant a blood-stained machete and drugs in his car and get him locked up for a long time.
At about 3am the following morning, he said, he was threatened by an officer that drugs would be injected into his bloodstream. He was later assaulted again, by as many as five officers, at the police station and at another place he could not identify.
One thing he managed to do, Chia said, was to leave his bloodied fingerprints in many parts of the police station that he had been dragged to.
"Only when they saw that I was barely surviving - as I had vomited blood and white foams were trickling out of my mouth - they took me to the hospital. By the time we got there, it was already 7 in the morning.
Magistrate ignored his complaints
Chia was taken to the Sungai Buloh Hospital and after that to the Petaling Jaya magistrate's court, about 10am, for a remand order against him.
He said he informed the magistrate of his ordeal but he was ignored. The magistrate ordered Chia to be remanded by police until Dec 22 on suspicion of possession of drugs and weapons.
During that period, he said, he was taken to a officer at narcotics department in the Petaling Jaya district police headquarters.
"He told me there was no case against me and called up the men who had abused me. He advised me to lodge a report and allowed me to contact my family," Chia added. He said that he was then released on police bail and RM5,000 was returned to him.
Segambut DAP MP Lim Lip Eng (left) assisted Chia in lodging his report at the Mutiara Damansara police station yesterday.
Lim said the investigating officer accompanied them to the Kota Damansara police station where most of the Chia's bloodstains been removed, but there were some under a table, behind a mirror and under a cupboard, which were photographed by police.
'Nobody is above the law'
Malaysiakini was later informed that the Selangor police contingent headquarters has officially taken over the matter.
A task force has been set up to investigate the complaint in detail. There will be no cover-up in the investigation, police said in a text message.
"Nobody is above the law. If there is evidence, the persons responsible will be charged in court," added the contingent's officer in-charge of criminal investigations, Mohd Adnan Abdullah.
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Who is to 'police' the police?
'Jensen (Chia, as I know him by), is the most likeable and generous person that you can meet anywhere. He definitely does not deserve this.'Beaten and robbed by cops over expired road tax
Habib RAK: The myth that only a few black sheep are in PDRM (royal police force) is now busted. This blatant and wanton abuse of authority by not one or two police personnel but by more than 10 officers at different time and location indicates that brutality is widespread within the force.
Such abuse can only happen when we have highly incompetent police personnel whose only capability is to act and do work in thuggish and mafia fashion. If the police were professionals, they would have easily established the victim's background and credibility in no time.
Instead, they assaulted him and stole his money. This incident adds to the long list of blatant abuses by the police which once again demands for the implementation of IPCMC (Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission).
Anonymous: Jensen (Chia, as I know him by), is the most likeable and generous person that you can meet anywhere. I have my pictures framed by him in TTDI (Taman Tun Dr Ismail). He contributes every month to the poor. He definitely does not deserve this.
To know that this atrocious crime has been committed against him by none other than the very people who should be protecting society is sad and frightening. What should we do? Use your vote wisely to change this government that has no moral authority to make the necessary changes to the police force.
CarL: What's the big fuss? How do we know that this man is telling the truth. For what we know he might be a criminal. It is very common for any crime suspect to hallucinate following long hours of verbal grilling by the police.
No criminals would admit their wrongdoings and it is very common for them to blame others instead. The police were just doing their job. Imagine if there is no police force in the country, the criminals would have a field day.
Rolls-Royce: Someday I wish CarL or his love ones would suffer the same fate as this victim (and I am doing this on Christmas day. May God forgive me for my indiscretion).
It is simple; an abusive police force, a police force that is ill-disciplined, greedy, corrupt, and has no respect for human rights and human dignity will eventually have no respect for your political affiliation, race and religion.
Those who complained here I believed have not done so out of political reasons alone. We must always ask who is in charge of police force today. Who has the authority to discipline the police force today? The complaint is directed toward the authority in charge.
If Pakatan Rakyat is in control of the federal government and in charge of the police force today, I believe the people will go the street to demand that the minister concerned and the IGP resign immediately. They will demand that the police officers involved be investigated immediately.
Cala: Who is to 'police' the police? What is the lesson learned from Chia Buang Hing's ordeal in the hands of thug-like police (from Kota Damansara police station)?
Let me cover two issues. First, while no complete solution is in sight, we should act to prevent the police from getting oversized. To do that, do consider splitting them up according to states. Second, following from (i), make state police chief answerable to the chief minister of the state. Ultimately, this new system ensures that the police are accountable to the people.
In conclusion, Chia's ordeal is yet another reminder of the brutality of the enforcement agencies. In this case, Chia is lucky to have survived the beatings. Say 'no' to police gangsterism. Please, no more another TBH (Teoh Beng Hock), sir. One is too many.
Neders: I try not to consider this case to be a racial or political one. However, at the back of my mind, I am inclined to believe it is somehow connected with this 'ketuanan' crap. This warped social engineering perpetrated by TDM (Dr Mahathir Mohamad) has implanted into the Malay pysche that they are indeed a supremacist race in this country and that non-Malays must be shown their place.
Ibrahim Ali of Perkasa will go along with this I am sure. Chia was beaten to a pulp at four locations, one of which was at a public car park. Didn't the police officer involved fear that they may be severely punished for this crime of assault and robbery? No, simply because they believe they have the tacit protection of the Umno regime.
I ask myself: am I paranoid? I don't think so. I look around me and racism is as thick as pea soup and the way the PDRM behave these days leads me to believe that the present regime is their political master. How sad and frightening at the same time.
Pain Killer: If indeed a thorough investigating has been set up, then all those police officers involved should be suspended. The police force must be seen that they do not condone the act, and that they will come down hard on the transgressors. The forensic team should be able to identify whose bloodstains were found at the alleged crime scene.
But why is it that my intuition is telling me that the spin doctors will make this case slip away into oblivion and forgotten?
Not Confused: This is the most disgusting incident that I have read since arriving here eight years ago. Words fail me as to how this country could have sunk so low.
Pakatan must take control of Putrajaya and put a stop to this unbridled abuse of power by the PDRM (and others). The entire force should be fired and rehired only after thorough vetting to ensure their integrity. The IGP (police chief) should resign immediately. Such incidents call for dramatic and uncompromising action.
Zimbobwe: IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC.... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC... IPCMC...
Pietiring: Where do we go from here? I've been suppressing myself in saying that very few cops are bad, while the majority are good cops. But how do I reason out after going through Chia's horrific experience with the law enforcers. Do I have to wait until I get the other side of the story from the official source?
Hardly a few days ago, news were screaming with the horrific accident in which 27 people, mostly Thai tourists, were killed when the local bus in which they were traveling overturned. I simply cannot fathom why tourists are coming here to die along with thousands of Malaysians who have been killed yearly on our highways-turned-graveyards.
Victor Johan: There should be an official statement from the home minister. Should his statement be a non-commital one, and/or an inappropriate recourse be taken by him, the victim should press charges and the court hearing must be conducted on an urgent basis.
Citizen: This is terrible. Things are getting out of hand as far as the police is concerned. It is time that the 27 million Malaysians go on a protest march against the police and the government for crimes against the citizens of Malaysia. I call upon every political party to rise and act. Let all NGOs rise against the barbaric actions of the police.
Simon Lee: We are living in a false sense of security. This is a lawless county. When the very institution (the judiciary, the MACC, the AG or the police) that has sworn in the name of Allah to protect the rakyat and ensure peace in our nation, are the main perpetrators of crime against the innocent rakyat, and when the innocent rakyat are treated with such injustice: brutality, torture and abuse, we cannot imagine how real criminals: juvenile and petty criminals are being treated by such institutions. This may explain the countless death in the police lockup.
MySecret: I'm surprise they didn't find any 'parang' in his car and that he did not attempt to commit suicide out of shame for not having a valid road tax.
Ravindran Supiiah: All I can say is to wish the PDRM Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. What a shame to our nation.
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