The Perak police have opened an internal inquiry into the alleged wrongful killing of M Marimuthu, who was gunned down by police in May this year, as reported by The Star Online. 

State CID chief Gan Tian Kee was quoted saying in the portal that the Tapah police crime department will lead the police inquiry. 

Yesterday, Marimuthu's widow R Vaijentimala called for a murder investigation to be launched against the police personnel responsible for her husband's death.  

"We are taking this allegation very seriously and will obtain statements and any form of evidence from the complainant to assist in investigations," Gan was quoted saying in a statement. 

Once the probe is completed, the investigation paper will be handed over to the deputy public prosecutor's office for further action, he added. 

Marimuthu, 41, was gunned down on May 24 this year in Air Kuning, Tapah, in what the police say was a shootout. 

According to the police, the deceased was the leader of "Gang Pam," a group which specialises in stealing pumps from heavy machinery. He reportedly tried to flee when flagged down by the police and opened fire, forcing them to retaliate. 

Vaijenthimala's lawyer N Surendran, however, disputed this, citing the postmortem report that showed the bullet had entered the deceased's chest at 40-degree downward angle.

This, he said, was more consistent with someone shooting Marimuthu while standing over him, as opposed to a shootout. 

The 41-year-old widow demanded justice for her husband, herself and her nine-month-old daughter, and called for all the police personnel involved in her husband's death to be immediately suspended.