Engine probe yields evidence in Uruguay

The Star.com ^ | 3/9/2010 | Lourdes Charles

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

The Govern­ment’s investigations into the stolen Royal Malaysian Air Force RMAF F5E jet engines in Uruguay has turned up evidence, in the form of documents and witnesses, necessary for instituting criminal proceedings here.

“We visited the military facility where the engines are kept under the custody of the Uruguayan judicial authority and have positively identified them as belonging to the Government of Malaysia,” said Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail.

Abdul Gani, who visited Uruguay and Argentina from Feb 15 to Feb 19, said they had drafted two mutual legal assistance requests for the return of the engines as well as to obtain the evidence.

“On Feb 22 an official mutual legal assistance request was also submitted to the Argentinian government to obtain the evidence and to produce the documents,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Abdul Gani added that the Government has appointed a legal counsel in Uruguay to represent the interests of the Government in any proceedings in Uruguay pertaining to the two stolen jet engines and the obtaining of evidence.

He said the counsel was seeking an appointment with the district attorney and the case judge in Uruguay this week for the recovery of the two engines.

On Jan 6, RMAF sergeant N. Tharmendran and company director Rajandran Prasad claimed trial in the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court to stealing the jet engines.