KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court here today awarded RM1.1 million in damages to the mother of Dutch model Ivana Esther Robert Smit, whose nude body was found on the sixth-floor balcony of a condominium here eight years ago.
Christina Carolina Gerarda Johanna Verstappen had sued the Inspector-General of Police, Dang Wangi investigating officer ASP Faizal Abdullah, the Home Minister, and the Malaysian government for alleged breach of statutory duties and negligence in the investigation into the cause of her daughter’s death.
In her judgment, Judge Roz Mawar Rozain ordered the defendants to pay RM500,000 in general damages, RM300,000 in aggravated damages, and RM300,000 in exemplary damages to Verstappen.
The defendants were also ordered to pay RM100,000 in costs to the plaintiff.
In the judgment, Roz Mawar also ordered the first defendant (Inspector-General of Police) to remove the second defendant (Faizal) from the current task force investigating the case, while the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) was ordered to recommence investigation relating to Ivana Smit’s death as per the 2019 High Court order.
“PDRM is (also) directed to brief the AGC (Attorney General Chambers) every three months from the date of this judgment on the updates of investigation, and the AGC is to deliver on the sufficiency of evidence and the next step forward,“ she said.
In allowing the suit by Verstappen, Roz Mawar ruled that there were breaches of the duty of care by the defendants and crime scene management failures.
“There were evidence preservation failures. There was inadequate witness and suspect handling. There was forensic evidence of neglect, and there was expert evidence of dismissal. The plaintiff is a direct victim, has suffered harm, and that harm suffered by the plaintiff is the direct and foreseeable consequence of the defendants’ breach of duty,“ she said.
Roz Mawar said the court also found there was misfeasance in public office, which involves the improper performance of a lawful act, and concluded that the investigation failed to employ advanced forensic methodologies that could have provided crucial temporal insights into the trauma suffered by the deceased.
She said that on Feb 8, 2018, a report revealed the presence of American citizen Alex Johnson’s Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) under the fingernails of the deceased.
“Despite this critical piece of evidence, both Alex and Luna Almazkyzy (couple) were allowed to leave Malaysia on March 29, 2018, nearly a month after the DNA findings became available,” she said.
The judge said the second defendant testified that although the DNA evidence was received and suspicions had arisen, no immediate steps were taken to detain the suspect or suspects before their departure.
“This sequence of events reflects a fundamental breakdown in investigative procedures. The presence of DNA evidence linking a suspect to the deceased, especially under such suspicious circumstances, should have triggered prompt and decisive action to prevent the suspect from leaving the jurisdiction,” she said. - Bernama
-- More to follow
