Traders still in shock over Najadi shooting

KUALA LUMPUR: Four days after the fatal shooting of Arab Malaysian Banking Group founder Hussain Ahmad Najadi in Lorong Ceylon, nearby traders are still in shock over what happened and refuse to speak much about it to the press.

A cook at a warong outside the parking lot near the Kuan Yin Temple, where Hussain Ahmad was shot, told The Star that he saw a man walking towards Hussain Ahmad and his wife and moments later heard gunshots.

“After that, I ran for safety and didn’t see anything else. When I came back, I saw a man lying on the ground with blood on his shirt,” said the cook who wished to remain anonymous.

A fruit seller said the area was packed with people as it was lunch time when the shooting occurred.

“I heard a few popping sounds but I didn’t think much of it. I thought someone was playing with firecrackers. It was only when people started crowding around the parking lot when I knew something was wrong.

“When I asked people what they saw everyone said they didn’t see or hear anything. It happened very quietly,” said the woman who also requested anonymity.

A worker at the parking lot shuddered and refused to talk about it but did not deny that he saw the incident.

Members of the Kuan Yin Temple also refused to give any comments to reporters.

On Monday, Hussain Ahmad was walking to his car with his wife after negotiating a land deal at the temple when he was shot.

A man came up behind him and opened fire, hitting him in the chest and lower abdomen.

The man fled in a waiting taxi. Najadi died on the spot while Cheong Mei Kuen was wounded in the arm and leg.

City police said the 44-year-old taxi driver, who allegedly drove the getaway vehicle for the prime suspect, would be remanded until Aug 6 for investigations.

“We have not ascertained whether the dri­ver was the accomplice of the main suspect or just a victim of circumstances,” said city police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Mohmad Salleh yesterday.

“He had been detained to assist investigation but we hope to know more in the next few days.”

DCP Mohmad said police had already recorded the statements of several people, including a man whom Hussain Ahmad met at the Kuan Yin temple for a land deal, prior to his murder.

“We are still waiting to record the statement of Najadi’s wife Cheong Mei Kuen. She is still recovering from the gunshot wounds,” he said.

On the manhunt for the suspect, he said police had stepped up efforts to track down the man known as Sei Ngan Chai (four-eyed guy in Cantonese).

DCP Mohmad said police had narrowed down the motive as being connected to pro­perty deals.