KUALA LUMPUR, April 2 — A Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) lawyer today put Thai forensic pathologist Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand through an inquisition of her professional past before questioning her on Teoh Beng Hock in front of the royal commission of inquiry (RCI) investigating Teoh’s death.
Datuk Seri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said Dr Pornthip has been accused of manufacturing evidence for money.
He also said a team of 12 top forensic pathologists had disputed Dr Pornthip’s conclusion of homicide in the high-profile death of a multi-millionaire’s brother in Thailand.
“You have to know what happened (in) the whole case. It’ll confuse with this case,” said Dr Pornthip at the RCI today.“If you got information from (the) Internet, I will not talk about this... you said many things that (are) not true,” added the flamboyant forensic expert.Teoh’s body was found on the fifth-floor corridor of Plaza Masalam in Shah Alam on July 16, 2009 after he was questioned overnight by MACC officers at their then-Selangor headquarters on the 14th floor.
Teoh, 30, was political secretary to Selangor executive councillor Ean Yong Hian Wah at the time of his death.
The anti-graft officers were investigating a claim that Ean Yong, who is also the Seri Kembangan assemblyman from the DAP, was abusing state funds.
Shafee said the high-profile case mentioned was former Bangkok MP Hangthong Thammawattana’s death in 1999, where the Thai government had roped in Dr Pornthip to conduct a second autopsy after the police concluded that it was suicide.“You concluded it’s homicide, which resulted in the younger brother being charged with murder,” said Shafee.
“He asked for a third autopsy. Top forensic pathologists in Thailand, Chicago... 12 experts, including your teachers, concluded it was suicide,” he added.Dr Pornthip denied that the expert from Chicago, whom she said was her teacher, had supported the group conclusion.“My teacher was on my side,” said Dr Pornthip, who is the director of the Central Institute of Forensic Science in Thailand’s Ministry of Justice.
She countered Shafee, saying she could show him her successful cases.“Many (times), police did wrong things, doctors did wrong things. For me, I’m not against them,” said Dr Pornthip, 55, who sports red and gold highlights in her spiky hair.
“(My) duty is to find truth for the dead and justice for the dead,” added Dr Pornthip, who has more than 30 years’ experience in forensic pathology.Shafee pointed out that the accused in Hangthong’s case was acquitted of murder.
“The accused sued you for defamation,” said Shafee.
“The (defamation) case is still in court,” replied Dr Pornthip, saying that the prosecution in Hangthong’s case was told to show evidence identifying suspects.
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She also said Teoh’s neck bruises were caused by manual strangulation or by someone hitting the DAP aide’s neck with a blunt object.
“I disagree that this (neck) wound (was) caused by fall from height,” she said.
She also disputed claims that the marks on Teoh’s neck were caused by post-mortem staining, which is a degradation of blood products during decomposition.
“In (the) second autopsy, (there is a) large amount of blood, so not staining,” she said.
“No blood can seep after death,” added Dr Pornthip, who is widely known as Dr Death in Thailand.
She said she observed Teoh’s second post-mortem that was conducted by local government forensic pathologist Dr Shahidan Md Noor on November 22, 2009.
The first autopsy was conducted by local government forensic pathologists Dr Khairul Azman Ibrahim and Dr Prashant Naresh Samberkar a day after Teoh’s death.
British forensic pathologist Dr Peter Vanezis, who also observed Teoh’s second autopsy, testified last Wednesday that the post-mortem he observed was “unreliable”.
Dr Vanezis said the photograph showing bruises on Teoh’s neck in the second autopsy indicated manipulation of the neck in the first post-mortem.
He had pointed out that the photograph of Teoh’s neck before incisions were performed in the first autopsy did not reveal much bruising.
Like Dr Vanezis, Dr Shahidan had also testified last month that Teoh’s purported neck bruises should be taken with a “pinch of salt”, as the two dark “bruises” were likely caused by post-mortem staining from the first autopsy.
But Dr Pornthip maintained her earlier testimony during the coroner’s inquest into Teoh’s death that Teoh’s neck bruises were pre-fall injuries.
“Look under soft tissue, (I) found a bruise there,” she said.
She also disagreed that Dr Khairul and Dr Prashant had an advantage over her as they had performed the first post-mortem on Teoh.
“Many, many cases, I did the second autopsy six months or a year ago, I can find evidence. It depends on the case,” she said.
The Thai forensic expert also said Teoh was alive when he plunged nine floors, but could not determine if the DAP aide was conscious during the fall.
The inquiry resumes on Monday.
Malaysian Insider 
Pornthip mengaku disiasat krn melanggar disiplin~, Disiasat oleh Majlis Perubatan Thailand~ 
Apr 3 2011, 06:43 PM
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