Khalid not afraid of video-recorded death threat

KUALA LUMPUR: Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar today brushed off a threat by a group in a video posting over YouTube, to kill him by blowing up his car.
"Such threats will never scare me at all," said Khalid about the 87-second video which showed three hooded men, who called themselves Anak Muda Anti-Demokrasi (Amad) or Anti-Democracy Youth.
"In carrying out our duties, threats like these are common and a part of life of a police officer," said Khalid.
"As the top police officer of the force, if I feared for my life in executing my duties such as upholding justice and democracy, then I have failed in my responsibilities. This threat will not slow me down but will spur me to a greater degree to uphold the peace and stability of the country," he added.
The threat against Khalid was uploaded on Monday, less than two weeks after a similar posting by a group who threatened to attack courthouses all over the country after the Federal Court upheld sodomy charges against Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and sent him to jail.
In the video uploaded on Monday, three individuals were seen seated behind a table with two rifles displayed crossed and upright on it, and ammunition, believed to be toy suction darts commonly used in play guns, lined up next to the guns.
With a Malaysian flag draped behind them, the spokesman seated in the centre spoke in Bahasa Malaysia, holding up a photo of a man they did not identify, and read out a message hitting out at the country's democratic system.
The video ended with an individual playfully moving two toy model cars in tandem before the spokesman set them on fire. The three men then made an obscene gesture while uttering a four-letter profanity.
It was later learnt that the photograph held by the spokesman was that of actor and comedian Jaafar Onn, whom online portals quoted as saying that he did not intend to lodge a police report as it would be a waste of his time.
Khalid said police are tracking down the culprits with the assistance of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and will take action against them.
He said it is worrying that certain quarters refuse to use democratic channels but choose to use wrongful ways of bringing about change.
On Feb 15, a group of four men claiming to be members of Anak Muda Malaysia, posted a video on YouTube in similar fashion threatening to attack courthouses with fireworks just before midnight on Feb 18, but the threat was never carried out.