Twist in sodomy saga (updated)

Monday July 28, 2008 MYT 9:20:20 PM

PETALING JAYA: Police have slammed a news portal report, which claimed that a private hospital doctor who had examined Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan had been arrested.

Deputy Inspector General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar said the articles were just another attempt by certain quarters to confuse the public over the on-going investigation into Mohd Saiful's police report alleging that he had been sodomised by PKR adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The online articles posted a medical report which said there was “zero active bleeding”, “zero ulcer or pus” and “zero tear and scar” in Mohd Saiful’s anus.

The report from Pusrawi Hospital was signed by Dr Mohamed Osman Abdul Hamid at 2.14pm on June 28.

Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kamaruddin, who also carried the report on his website, said this proved that Mohd Saiful was not sodomised by Opposition de facto leader Anwar.

“The police also have a copy of this report that I have published, so they know what I know,” he wrote.

Raja Petra also alleged that Dr Mohamed Osman had gone into hiding because the police wanted him to change his medical report to implicate Anwar.

“There is no truth to these allegations," said the Deputy IGP.

"In fact we interviewed the aforementioned doctor in the early stages of our investigation following the report lodged by Saiful.

“Neither did we arrest the doctor or detain him for three days as alleged in the Malaysia Today article. We do not have any plans to do so either,” Ismail said, declining to comment further.

PKR secretary-general Salehuddin Hashim said there needed to be a complete public disclosure of the facts of the case.

“The medical report appears to confirm what we have always believed – that the allegations against Anwar are without merit and are politically motivated.”

DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang said: “This is a very disturbing turn of developments and will subject Malaysia to a new spate of international bashing unless the police can come forward to throw light on the first medical report and the whereabouts of Dr Mohamed Osman.”

How the medical report was leaked, which is a breach of patient confidentiality, is unknown, but Health Minister Datuk Liow Tiong Lai said the Malaysian Medical Council must look into the case.

A top Health Ministry official said the leaked report was probably not a full report because it appeared to be documenting only the superficial.

A spokesperson from the hospital said a statement would be issued