SHAH ALAM: Housing and Local Government minister Zuraida Kamaruddin said she was satisfied with the inquest verdict which ruled that 24-year-old firefighter Muhammad Adib Mohd Kassim’s death was an act of criminal.
Zuraida said the ministry and the Fire and Rescue Department had used all possible avenues through the inquest to establish the cause of Adib’s death and ensure that justice was served.
“Alhamdulillah, after 41 days of the inquest, today we have received the verdict that it was a criminal act. I am very satisfied. I will leave it to the police to take the next course of action.
“I hope all Malaysians will accept the decision well. Please do not politicise this or relate it to the issues of race and religion.
“This (case) is an issue of Malaysia because Adib died in the line of duty and we want justice,” said Zuraida when met outside the Shah Alam court complex.
Coroner Rofiah Mohamad had ruled that Adib’s death was a result of a criminal act, saying that the blunt chest trauma on Adib was not self-inflicted or an accident but a criminal act by two or more unidentified people.
In her findings, Rofiah had also said the police’s failure to control the riot that led to the Nov 27,2018 fire that occurred at the Sri Maha Mariamman temple in Subang Jaya contributed to Adib’s death.
Zuraida said she had spoken with Adib’s brother, Muhammad Ashraf, and his aunt after the verdict was delivered.
“They told me that they are thankful that they have gotten justice,” said Zuraida, adding that later she would be meeting Adib’s father, Mohd Kassim Abdul Hamid, who was on his way from Kedah to Kuala Lumpur.
Adib died on Dec 17 last year after being treated at the National Heart Institute for 21 days. He was believed to have been assaulted by rioters at a temple in Subang Jaya. He was part of an emergency response team dispatched to the scene to douse a vehicle which had been torched.