With Altantuya Shaariibuu’s family contesting a reduced damages award, Mongolia has formally protested Malaysia’s handling of the case and sought a fair process and answers, the Associated Press reported.
Former Mongolian Prime Minister Zandanshatar Gombojav, now a special envoy for the case, said Thursday Mongolia sent its protest note Tuesday. He said it asks Malaysia to review the Court of Appeal’s decision, help return a convicted officer from Australia to testify in the family’s civil suit, examine potentially new evidence and provide an official written response.
The family brought a civil case against Malaysia’s government, two police officers and Abdul Razak Baginda, seeking compensation for shock and trauma tied to Altantuya’s death, the Associated Press reported. A Malaysian high court held the defendants liable in 2022 and awarded 5 million ringgit ($1.2 million). In January, Malaysia’s Court of Appeal set damages at 1.4 million ringgit ($343,000) and removed the government’s liability, reasoning that the officers had acted beyond their official responsibilities. The family has challenged that decision.
Altantuya was 28 and pregnant when she died in October 2006. Her killing involved gunfire and military-grade plastic explosives outside Kuala Lumpur. Two officers from an elite police unit were convicted; they had served as bodyguards to former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak. Abdul Razak Baginda, her lover and a close aide to Najib, faced a separate trial but was acquitted of abetting the crime. No court has established who ordered the killing, and Najib has denied involvement.
Both officers received death sentences. One is in Australia after leaving Malaysia while challenging his conviction; the other was given a 40-year prison term in 2024 after his death sentence was commuted, the Associated Press reported.
At a news conference in Kuala Lumpur, Zandanshatar said the family had spent 20 years without an apology. He said a fair outcome had implications for trust between Mongolia and Malaysia. He urged Malaysia to pursue further talks with Australia about bringing the officer back. The Associated Press reported that the man’s death sentence complicates extradition from Australia.
