A customs officer who was arrested along with the late Selangor customs deputy chief Ahmad Sarbaini Mohamad told the inquest into his colleague's death today that he was beaten when in the custody of the anti-graft body.

"On the day before I was released, I was sick and had to be taken to the clinic.

"Before I was sent back to the lock-up, I was taken to have my prints recorded. On the way, I was hit from behind. Someone hit me on the head. I guess they were unhappy with me," Abdul Rahim Abdul Kadir told the inquest.

NONE Rahim, the 24th witness called in the inquest presided by magistrate Aizatul Akmal Maharani ( left ), who is sitting as coroner, related how he felt a pulsating pain in his head afterwards. But he was not taken for treatment for the injury.

He was testifying on the ninth day of the inquest into the death of Sarbaini, who was found dead on the first floor badminton court of the Kuala Lumpur Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission building on Jalan Cochrane on April 6, allegedly after a fall from a third floor pantry window.

Sarbaini was arrested along with Rahim, 41, on April 1 in a nationwide anti-graft dragnet, dubbed Operation 3B, against Customs officers and cargo forwarding agents.

The senior customs officer reportedly went to the MACC office on April 6 to recant his confession, made on April 4, on receiving bribes from forwarding agents.

'MACC officers verbally assaulted me'

Rahim also related how he was verbally assaulted by MACC officers during the three times that his statement was recorded.

"My statement was recorded thrice. Once by a woman officer and twice by male officers.

"The woman was genial, but during questioning by the two males, they were a bit rough. They raised their voices and threatened me."

NONE Rahim also said the officers were angry when he did not confess, accused him of taking bribes and tried to force him to admit to graft activities.

However, he said, his defiance to their verbal threats and angry voices did not lead to any retaliation from the officers while in the interrogation rooms.

Rahim also told the inquest that he had lodged a police report on the matter. However, when coroner Aizatul asked for a copy of the report, he did not have it with him.

Aizatul then instructed Rahim to bring a copy tomorrow, when he would be recalled.

The customs superintendent also said he was denied permission to perform noon prayers when he was arrested and later, during his interrogation, he was also denied permission to perform noon and evening prayers.

He related how his MACC interrogators told him that if he insisted on performing his prayers, they might extend his interrogation to make up for the time, which might result in him spending more time as a guest in their custody.  

‘Feared for his safety’

During the break for lunch, court officials produced the two police reports lodged by Rahim through the government’s online documentation system.

Rahim was then recalled to the witness stand.

He confirmed a police report he lodged on April 5, immediately after he was released.

 The report contains his allegation that he was hit hard on the head by an MACC officer and denied his right to perform prayers.

However, there is also another police report made by him on April 7, one day after Ahmad Sarbaini was found dead.

In this report, Rahim retracted his earlier police complaint and asked the police not to investigate because he “fears that something untoward may happen to me”.

Pressed by MACC lawyer Mohammad Shafee Abdullah, the Customs officer said he lodged the second police report because he feared for his safety.

“If, in the MACC office they can hit me, maybe they can hit me outside of the office too,” Rahim added.