In an unprecedented legal ruling, Malaysia’s High Court has delivered a watershed verdict holding state authorities responsible for the enforced disappearance of Pastor Raymond Koh, ending a nearly decade-long pursuit for justice by his wife Susanna Liew. The court determined that the elite Special Branch police unit orchestrated Koh’s 2017 abduction, marking the first judicial acknowledgment of state involvement in such a case in Malaysian history.
The case dates back to February 13, 2017, when Koh was forcibly taken by masked operatives in a meticulously coordinated daylight operation captured on CCTV. The footage, which subsequently went viral, showed multiple SUVs and motorcycles intercepting the 63-year-old pastor’s vehicle before he was dragged from his car and driven away.
Two independent investigations—by Malaysia’s human rights commission and a government task force—later revealed that religious motivations underpinned the abduction. Authorities allegedly perceived Koh’s Christian activities as threatening to Malaysia’s majority Islamic faith. The investigations identified a specific senior police official with “extreme views” against religious minorities as a primary person of interest.
The breakthrough emerged in 2018 when a police sergeant confessed to families of both Koh and another missing activist, Amri Che Mat, that the Special Branch had orchestrated both disappearances. This testimony, despite later retraction, was deemed credible by investigators.
The court has ordered substantial compensation, including accumulating daily payments of 10,000 ringgit (£1,830) until Koh’s whereabouts are revealed—totaling over 32 million ringgit to date. While the government has appealed the verdict, citing “financial obligations” and “universal justice,” no police officials have faced criminal charges, with one reportedly receiving promotion since the abduction.
Liew, who received the International Women of Courage award from the U.S. State Department in 2020, has transitioned from pastor’s wife to prominent activist against enforced disappearances. Despite personal trauma and family depression resulting from the ordeal, she has remarkably forgiven the perpetrators while continuing to demand institutional accountability and truth regarding her husband’s fate.