MALAYSIA – Six people, including Rompin MP Jamaluddin Jarjis, were killed when the helicopter they boarded crashed in Semenyih, Kajang Saturday, Malaysia’s Home Ministry said.
Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said Jamaluddin was on board the crashed helicopter and was believed to be among the six fatalities reported.
Jamaluddin was a member of Parliament for Rompin, Pahang from 1990. He was also Malaysian special envoy to the United States
All of those onboard the helicopter, a AS 3655N2 Dauphin (9M-1GB), perished in the crash, the police said.
The other five victims were identified as businessman Tan Sri Robert Tan, Dato Seri Azlin Alias, who was Private Secretary General, Prime Minister’s Office, a pilot, co-pilot and a bodyguard.
Source said the private helicopter carried the victims after they attended the wedding reception of Prime Minister Najib Razak’s daughter in Taman Tasik Sultan Abu Bakar in Pekan, Pahang. The chopper was flying towards Subang from Kuantan when it reportedly caught fire before crashing.
Home Minister Hamidi, however, said they were still gathering more information on the crash and stated that the police are closely working the fire and rescue department on site.
It is learnt that a distress call was received by the Selangor Fire and Rescue Department at about 5pm and over 20 firemen have deployed to assist in the search.
Police say three charred bodies have been recovered so far. – BusinessNewsAsia.com