Police officer in pursuit hit by runaway lorry, dies
MALACCA, May 14 — A police officer was killed on-duty after being hit by a lorry while attempting to arrest a suspect who had stolen a furniture truck in Kampung Solok Limau Purut, Alor Gajah here, at 6.55am this morning.
The deceased, Corporal Rasul Tumin, 47, was an officer from the Alor Gajah Police Headquarters Patrol Unit.
He died after being hit by the truck, which was abandoned by the suspect on a hilly path in the village.
The victim had been patrolling the Alor Gajah area with his partner, Corporal Hamidi Daud, when they detected a three tonne lorry that was reported stolen at Gemencheh, Negeri Sembilan.
Malacca Police Chief Datuk Chuah Ghee Lye said the officers then pursued the truck for around 20 minutes before it entered an oil palm estate.
“As soon as they reached the site, the suspect abandoned the lorry and fled after failing to drive through the hilly path,” he told reporters at the Melaka Hospital here.
He said the victim, who was seated in the front passenger seat exited the vehicle and ran out to apprehend the suspect when the lorry suddenly began reversing towards him.
The officer, who had served the force for 24 years, managed to partially avoid the lorry but was still hit badly. He died on the spot due to severe injuries.
Chuah said that initial police investigations revealed that the suspect was believed to have failed to engage the parking brake of the truck, and added that they were tracking down the suspect with help from the police dog unit, forensic and the Rela members.
Meanwhile, the victim’s younger sibling, Karim Tumin, 45 who is the Malacca Education Department’s Head of Technical Vocational Unit, said the news of his brother’s death was both shocking and a huge loss to the family.
He said the victim, who leaves behind a widow and four children, was a committed police officer. — Bernama
