KOTA KINABALU: A policeman told the High Court yesterday that it was the Sulu gunmen who fired first at a group of Malaysian commandos during their encounter at Kampung Tanduo in Lahad Datu.
Mancha Anak Ata, 48, who is attached to the General Operations Force commando Unit 69, told the High Court here yesterday that he and his fellow commandos were patrolling in the village on March 1 at around 9.50am when they spotted some 35 to 40 armed intruders who taunted and shouted at them.
“The intruders shouted “Tiger, keluar kau dari sini, ini bumi kami” (Tiger, get out of here, this is our land), before they opened fire at us repeatedly,” he testified at the trial of special branch detective Corporal Hassan Hj Ali Basari who is charged for intentionally withholding information relating to terrorism acts.
Hassan, 58, who was attached to the special branch in Lahad Datu, was charged with intentional omission to submit information relating to terrorism acts at the office of the special branch chief at Lahad Datu police station between January and March, 2013.
The indictment under Section 130M of the Penal Code carries a maximum jail of seven years, or with a fine, or with both, upon conviction.
“We took cover and fired back at the intruders,” Mancha told Justice Ravinthran Paramaguru during examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Dato Nordin Hassan, who had asked him about the action they took after the intruders attacked them.
He also said that one of his personnel died at the scene due to severe gunshot wounds during the shootout that lasted for one hour.
To a question from Nordin, Mancha said, the intruders were armed with M16 rifles, garrands, pistols and grenade launchers.
“After the shootout, I instructed my personnel to check the area and they found 12 dead bodies of the intruders, weapons and their clothes,” he said, adding that they left the area at 2pm on the next day after they received instruction to withdraw.
Meanwhile, another witness, Lahad Datu special branch chief told the court that the information about the Sultanate of Sulu and his threat to Sabah was important and should be reported immediately to him.
Assistant Superintendent Noraidin Ag Maidin, 37, said that any information regarding national security must be reported to him by way of writing or orally.
“My personnel were given a deadline to submit whatever information they gathered to me as soon as possible soon after they received the information,” he said during examination-in-chief by Nordin.
He also said that Hassan has never informed him that he had contacted Agbimuddin on February 13 and 17, 2013 and this was important information as Agbimuddin was the leader of the intruders.
“Apart from that, Hassan had never informed that he knew about the invasion plan by 1,500 people who gathered in Simunul Island that they would intrude Sabah,” said Noraidin.
During cross-examination by Ram, he disagreed with the suggestion by counsel that he was blaming the accused solely for not giving him information.
To another question, Noraidin said, he was not aware about the Sulu claim over Sabah until he was informed on February 12, 2013 that an invasion had taken place at Kampung Tanduo by the Sulu gunmen.
“My first knowledge about this Sabah claim was from the police report lodged by an auxiliary police (one of the prosecution’s witnesses),” he answered, when agreeing to another question from Ram.
Nordin was assisted by DPPs Nazrul Nizam Mohd Zameri, Cheng Heng Kher and Anati Kisahi while Ram was assisted by counsels Kamarudin Mohd Chinki and YS Lo.
The trial continues on June 28.