A policeman who is accused of murdering Mongolian woman Altantuya Shaariibuu yesterday denied in court that he was at the murder scene. Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri, 31, also denied telling Ms Altantuya's former lover, political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, that 'you can sleep in peace tonight'. However, he admitted in the High Court that he had 'settled' the analyst's problem that night.
Azilah, a member of an elite police unit that guards VVIPs, and another policeman, Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, 36, are accused of killing Ms Altantuya and blowing up her remains in a jungle in Puncak Alam, near Shah Alam, between Oct19 and Oct20, 2006.
Azilah testified last week that Mr Musa Safri, the aide-de-camp of Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, had asked him to help Mr Abdul Razak. The latter was allegedly being blackmailed by Ms Altantuya, who Azilah had referred to in court as a 'Chinese woman'.
Mr Abdul Razak, a close friend of Datuk Seri Najib, was acquitted of abetting the murder late last year. The affiliations with Mr Najib had given his political enemies the room to link him to the murder case.
During Azilah's cross-examination yesterday, he repeatedly denied that he was at the crime scene with Sirul on the night of the murder. 'I was in my office in Bukit Aman and I went for supper with my fiancee, Norazila (Baharudin),' Azilah replied when questioned by lead prosecutor Majid Hamzah.
He also stuck to his testimony that his intention of going to Mr Abdul Razak's house with Sirul was to merely pick up Ms Altantuya and take her back to her hotel, as advised by Mr Abdul Razak. He maintained that he had left Ms Altantuya with Sirul later and had asked him to send her back to the hotel.
Azilah, however, clarified that he had not checked with Sirul again if MsAltantuya had been sent back to the hotel. He said that he had called Mr Abdul Razak when he was back at his office. 'I considered the problem 'settled',' he said. But he denied that 'settled' meant killing the woman.
Said Tun Majid: 'I say to you, (Abdul) Razak's problem ended that night after you and Sirul shot and blew up Altantuya in Puncak Alam.'
'Disagree,' replied Azilah.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/20/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
"I was on my routine patrol duties, passing over the bridge, when I saw that 'is Lordship 'ad been interfered wif. I reached this conclusion by first determining that 'is Lordship were not responsive to my queries, which on examination, I suppose was due to 'is 'ead being absent from 'is shoulders by some degree of distance."
NEW YORK – U.S Airways has sent $5,000 checks to each of the 150 passengers on Flight 1549 to compensate them for lost luggage and other belongings. I'll remember that next time my luggage goes AWOL.
That was the flight that crash-landed in the Hudson River last week after losing power simultaneously in both engines shortly after takeoff. All 155 people aboard survived.
In a letter sent to passengers, an airline executive said she was "truly sorry." The letter also explained that passengers' belongings left in the plane could be stuck with investigators for months.
The airline also said it would reimburse passengers for their ticket costs. And cab fares and hotel costs, too? And now that I'm thinking about it, my back hurts. And I've been having pain and suffering, too. All because that foolish pilot didn't see that there were birds that were obviously in the way before we took off. And my 10kt diamond ring got lost during the incident, too.
#3
If I had been on the plane there is no way I would sue.
$5K just about would make up for the contents of my suitcase and briefcase, assuming my laptop was in there, along with a hotel for a couple nights.
I would be alive and unharmed. I would be thankful to Captain Sullenberger and that great flight crew. I would be thankful to the ferry boat crews. I would be thankful to my fellow passengers for everyone keeping their cool and looking after each other. I would be thankful to Airbus for building a good plane.
And I wouldn't sue a soul.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/20/2009 14:09 Comments ||
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How much for cleaning the soiled undergarments?
Including the back-up systems on the plane that let Capt. Sullenberger fly it all the way down to the Hudson.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/20/2009 00:00 ||
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In the article they hit upon the ultimate responsibility of the pilot-in-command:
ut in addition to basic flying skills, the ditching also underscores another factor pilots should consider in surviving such emergencies: the need to quickly choose a course of action, even if it goes against normal procedures. Barely 30 seconds after his aircraft hit the birds and lost nearly all thrust from both engines, the captain disregarded the advice of air-traffic controllers and decided that ditching in the Hudson was the best option.
In the FARs, the pilot-in-command may break any FAA regulation in an emergency for the safety of the aircraft and its passengers and crew. He just better be ready to justify it on the ground after the incident.
Capt. Sullenberger was the epitome of good airmanship and good judgement.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
01/20/2009 0:42 Comments ||
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I wonder what the controllers had in mind as an option. And how long they were going to wait before they divulged it.
#3
Other stories suggested that they were considering
Returning to LaGuardia Airport, and
Continuing to Teterboro Airport in NJ.
Posted by: Eric Jablow ||
01/20/2009 6:50 Comments ||
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He knew more than the controllers and has more airtime then they have/had. Teterboro could not accept a 320 - no runway allowance plus I doubt he could maintain glide path long enough. La Guardia puts him in glide path back over highly congested population in Bronx and Queens. It was correct decision even in hindsight. But if had lost lives then there would be tons of second guessing.
Posted by: Jack is Back ||
01/20/2009 11:08 Comments ||
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No matter the outcome, Capt Sullenberger was the aircraft COMMANDER. No time for consensus building or a poll. Second guessing by controllers (gummit workers) from the safety of control towers doesn't pass the so what test. There really is no substitute for solid experience, skill, and professionalism.
#6
Those passengers are alive because Sulley trusted himself enough to know where to go and to ignore the tower; now if he had waited for some order to come back from the tower and trusted it blindly...
#7
Now, compare that with that American Airline idiot flying over Cuba(true story).
A huge cell loom ahead straddling the airway.
He asked for a deviation right or left of course.
At 3am, the Coo-ban controller is sound asleep,
most likely drunk.After a dozen frantic calls
without answer, the 787 enter the cell and cross
it square in the middle. No, they did not rip a wing off, but quite a few pax got broken legs and things for hitting the ceiling then the floor...
That loopdeloop cost AA quite a few millions.
All the dummy had to do is go around, but he had heard that a few Miami Cubans had been shot down
in a little plane for violating Cuban airspace.
More likely, the Mig they could have sent up
would have got up there only AFTER everyone would have cleared custom in Mi-djamah...
Lot of that crap happened when AA purchased southern routes from bankrupt Eastern or PanAm, I forgot which, but down there, you dont always
have ATC holding your hand...first they dont speak english and it's mostly bush flying
as all facilities stopped working long ago.
You hop on that big plane, don't assume it's always a genius up front, you better kiss your ass goodbye first!!!
Posted by: Ming the Merciless ||
01/20/2009 22:37 Comments ||
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Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
01/20/2009 19:45 Comments ||
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#4
Guinness is okay in Ireland. The stuff they sell here is garbage (IMHO). I don't really care for it. If you ever get the chance to venture to the 'aul sod I'd suggest Smithwicks - much smoother, warmer and has great after taste methinks.
A robber was shot dead while he was robbing a house in Orangi Town on Monday. According to details, three armed men broke into Anwar Haider's house situated in Faqir Colony, within the jurisdiction of Mominabad Police Station. The neighbours saw the men breaking in and started shouting. Upon hearing the commotion, the robbers decided to escape but one of them was caught by the area's residents. The consequent thrashing at the hands of the mob resulted in his death on the spot. The police, however, said that the deceased also received a bullet wound by the firing of his own accomplices.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/20/2009 00:00 ||
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The annual ritual of getting a girl married to a frog organised in Pallu Puthupattu village on the Tamil Nadu-Puducherry border is an interesting meeting of fairy tale and real life. On the first Friday of Thai (Tamil month) every year, a girl of Pallu Puthupattu village is married off to a frog that is fished out from a temple tank.
On Friday eight-year-old R Vigneswari of the village was married to a frog that was fished out from a Sri Muthu Mariyamman temple. At the wedding the residents adopted all the rituals that are followed during a normal wedding. The people residing at western side of Sri Muthu Mariyamman temple were considered as relatives of frog. They visited the residence of the bride, Vigneswari and obtained permission of her parents for the marriage. The girl decked up with bridal make up and saree was taken out on a rally on Friday evening. The procession culminated at pond in Vannankulam. After three-hour long ordeal they have caught a frog from the tank. Amidst chanting of devotional hymns and beating of drums, temple priest, on behalf of the amphibian, tied nuptial knot to Vigneswari in a pandal set up at near a school. Residents greeted the 'newly married couple' and offered moi (cash) to them. Dinner was served to all the invitees in pandal.
After performing pujas the frog was released into the temple pond. The local residents believe that performing such marriages will protect them from evil forces and ailments.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/20/2009 00:00 ||
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We need to have a Rantburg representative at this shindig next year. He or she can do a good write up and post pics. John frum, got any pics of this?
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
01/20/2009 0:45 Comments ||
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Here is a copy of a pic I found of the bride, with the groom in her hand. Little fellow he is. It would have been really something marrying a bullfrog, heh.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
01/20/2009 0:54 Comments ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
A policeman who is accused of murdering Mongolian woman Altantuya Shaariibuu yesterday denied in court that he was at the murder scene. Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri, 31, also denied telling Ms Altantuya's former lover, political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, that 'you can sleep in peace tonight'. However, he admitted in the High Court that he had 'settled' the analyst's problem that night. 
The annual ritual of getting a girl married to a frog organised in Pallu Puthupattu village on the Tamil Nadu-Puducherry border is an interesting meeting of fairy tale and real life. On the first Friday of Thai (Tamil month) every year, a girl of Pallu Puthupattu village is married off to a frog that is fished out from a temple tank. 
