Father of murdered Mongolian woman Altantuya applies to Malaysian court to reopen probe

KUALA LUMPUR – The father of Altantuya Shaariibuu, who was murdered in 2006 by two bodyguards for officials including former Malaysian premier Najib Razak, has petitioned the courts to order a further investigation into her death.

Mr Shaariibuu Setev, 76, has applied for a judicial review to compel Malaysian authorities to probe the contents of a sworn affidavit made from death row in 2019 by one of the men convicted of killing the Mongolian woman, Mr Shaariibuu’s lawyer, Ms Sangeet Kaur Deo, said in a statement on Aug 28 in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur.

In that affidavit, Azilah Hadri, one of two secret-service policemen convicted of the 28-year-old woman’s murder, said that Najib gave the order for her to be killed.

Najib has consistently denied any role in Altantuya’s death, was never charged, and no proof of his involvement has ever been established in court. 

Representatives for Najib, Azilah and the Attorney-General’s Chambers didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Azilah had his

death sentence commuted to life imprisonment

in 2024.

He used the sworn affidavit to support his application, and the public prosecutor didn’t dispute its contents, Ms Sangeet said in the statement.

The hearing on the judicial review application will be held on Sept 29, Ms Sangeet said separately by text.

If successful, the application would reopen an investigation into a murder that shocked Malaysia and left questions about the motive unresolved for almost two decades.

In October 2006, Altantuya was abducted outside the home of her ex-lover Abdul Razak Baginda, a former adviser to Najib.

She was then taken to a forest outside Kuala Lumpur,

shot twice in the head and blown up

with explosives. 

Two officers from an elite police unit, Azilah and Sirul Azhar Umar, who were part of a bodyguard detail for Najib and other senior leaders, were convicted of her murder, but a motive was never established.

Abdul Razak, who denies involvement, was charged with abetting the murder but was later acquitted.

The application to reopen the criminal investigation comes as Mr Shaariibuu’s legal efforts over his daughter’s murder near a conclusion, of sorts, in civil court. 

In 2022, Mr Shaariibuu and his family won a civil lawsuit first brought 18 years ago in Malaysia against Azilah, Sirul, Abdul Razak and the government.

All of the defendants were found liable for Altantuya’s death and ordered to pay more than RM9 million (S$2.75 million) in damages and costs.

Abdul Razak and the government appealed the ruling, with decisions expected to be handed down in October.

The court has said both parties will need to pay RM4.7 million each if they lose.

Najib, 72, was sentenced to 12 years in prison in 2020 for abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering related to the 1Malaysia Development Bhd scandal.

He had that sentence halved

in 2024 and is petitioning the courts to serve the remaining three years or so of his term at home.

In an interview with Bloomberg News in Hong Kong in June, Mr Shaariibuu said it would be “insane” for the jailed politician to stage a political comeback, but he doesn’t care if Najib is allowed to serve the rest of his prison term at home. BLOOMBERG