©New Straits Times
(Used by permission)
by Audrey Dermawan and Melissa Darlyne Chow
GEORGE TOWN: "I can't think of anyone who would want to hurt my father."
This was the response from A. Raja Annamalai, the second
child of prominent lawyer Datuk S.P. Annamalai who was stabbed to death on
Tuesday evening, when asked to comment on his father's death.
Raja Annamalai, 31, an accountant in the Klang Valley, said as far as he was
concerned, his father had no enemies.
He said on the contrary, his father was a very kind and helpful person.
"I still cannot believe this has happened to him," he said at his home in Lorong
Air Terjun here yesterday.
Raja Annamalai said his father was in Kuala Lumpur last week
on a working visit and had a gathering with some of his former classmates.
"There was nothing unusual about him then. In fact, he looked very happy after
meeting up with his old friends," said a tearful Raja Annamalai.
His father's casket was brought back to their home at noon yesterday from the
Church of Immaculate Conception funeral parlour in Pulau Tikus.
It was reported that Annamalai was attacked by an unknown assailant at 6.35pm at
the car park 10 metres from his office.
He was rushed to the nearby Gleneagles Medical Centre but succumbed to his
injuries at 7.55pm.
A post–mortem conducted by State Forensic pathologist Datuk Dr Bhupinder Singh
showed the victim died of massive loss of blood. There were two stab wounds on
his back, one of which pierced his liver.
Annamalai's Indian national wife, A. Anusuyal, 59, who had just returned from
Chennai yesterday morning, was too distraught to speak to reporters.
Among those who paid their respects yesterday was Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh
Tsu Koon who urged police to protect the witnesses. He described Annamalai as a
cheerful and positive person.
Meanwhile, Northeast district police chief Assistant Commissioner Azam Abdul
Hamid, said the motive could be numerous. He said police were producing the
photo fit of the suspect based on accounts by several witnesses. It is learnt
that the suspect is in his late 20s. He is also said to be dark–skinned and
stocky.