Archive for April, 2017

Important Questions About “Most Likely” MH370 Crash Site

Drift model for a crash site at 35S latitude. Black lines are paths for debris and arrow heads are positions on December 31, 2015. (Click on image to enlarge.)

recent report from Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) was greeted with much fanfare. A previous report published in December 2016 predicted that MH370 would be found along the 7th arc at 35S latitude. With new results in, the ATSB proclaimed that they were even more confident in their findings.

Using advanced computer models of how debris from the crash might drift across the Indian Ocean towards Africa, and comparing those results to the location and timing of debris discovered along the shores of Eastern Africa, it was possible to narrow the location to 25,000 sq km of unsearched sea bed. However, the results from this model, presented in December 2016, did not predict that one of MH370’s flaperon would arrive on the French island of La Reunion by the discovery date of July 2015. This perplexed the researchers at CSIRO, who were committed to better understand the discrepancy.

Researchers knew that because the recovered flaperon floated with a portion above the water, the drift path was more heavily influence by wind and waves than debris that floated flat on the surface. The computer model for the flaperon was therefore adjusted for the extra “leeway” by measuring the drift behavior of replica flaperons that were constructed and tested by CSIRO. However, even when the computer model for the flaperon was corrected for this extra leeway, the drift models still did not predict that the flaperon would arrive in La Reunion by July 2015. That was until the American National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) was able to locate a spare flaperon, which was modified by Australian investigators to resemble the flaperon debris that was recovered. The drift behavior of the modified flaperon was then experimentally measured just as the behavior of the replicas was previously measured. The experimental results said that the computer model should include even more leeway, and the wind would also tend to push the flaperon about 20 degrees to the left. When these effects were included in the computer model for the flaperon, the drift models now predicted an arrival date in La Reunion that was consistent with the discovery date of July 2015, and this was released in a new report. CSIRO felt as though the last missing piece of the puzzle was found.

As reported recently in the media, these results gave CSIRO even higher confidence that its drift models are correct, and MH370 would be found along the 7th arc at 35S latitude. Surprisingly, nowhere in those stories was it reported that at this latitude, the seabed was already searched to a distance of about 20 NM from the arc without finding the plane.

Fellow IG member and co-collaborator Richard Godfrey viewed CSIRO’s drift model with skepticism. He had already performed his own drift study using a computer model he had independently developed, which I have previously discussed and published on this blog, and he came to a much different conclusion. He argued that the timing and location of the debris recovered along the shores of Africa were not consistent with a crash at 35S latitude. Rather, a crash at 30S latitude, well north of the seabed search, was much more likely.

Rather than post Richard’s short comments on this blog, I asked him to prepare a more in-depth critique of CSIRO’s work, as certainly his comments would raise many questions. Within 24 hours, a critique arrived in my inbox, which I publish in full here. In addition to the simulated trajectories of debris, Richard also includes the effect of temperature history on barnacle growth, and comments on the effect of storms in the region. He concludes: Despite the significant contribution in refining the accuracy of the drift model, the new data is interpreted as confirming the findings of the ATSB First Principles Review. The pre-conceived idea, that “other evidence” constrains the MH370 End Point to between 32°S and 36°S is a false assumption. A MH370 End Point at 35°S does not fit the fact that the underwater search has already discounted this location to a 97% level of certainty. An MH370 End Point at around 30°S does fit the available data.

While Richard was preparing his critique, I tried to independently reconcile the differing conclusions of CSIRO and Richard. Basically, CSIRO was predicting a crash site at 35S, and Richard maintained that a search at 30S had a much higher probability of success. Fortunately, the results of CSIRO’s drift studies were made available as KMZ files that could be imported into Google Earth. Using these files, as well as the recent report and the report from December 2016, I was able to piece together some information.

The arrival of debris on the shores of Eastern Africa is highly dependent on the latitude of the crash site. In general, crash sites further to the north along the 7th arc will produce debris that arrives earlier in Africa. After traveling west across the Indian Ocean towards Africa, the debris then tends to travel south. Therefore, debris reaching Eastern Africa would beach last on the shores of South Africa.

The figure at the top of the article shows the position of debris on December 31, 2015, as predicted by the CSIRO model for a crash site along the 7th arc at 35S latitude. The debris is assumed to have “low windage”, which is consistent with the shape of the engine cowling and flap fairing that were discovered in Mozambique and South Africa in December 2015. As can be seen in the figure, CSIRO’s model does not predict that a crash site at 35S latitude would produce debris that would beach as far south along the shores of Eastern Africa as the actual debris that was found. The results of CSIRO’s model are in this respect consistent with the findings of Richard Godfrey.

So why does CSIRO maintain that a crash site at 35S produces debris of the correct location and timing as what was found? The answer lies in a panel from Figure 3.2.1 of the report from December 2016, which is shown below. The vertical axis represents the latitude of potential crash sites along the 7th arc, and the horizontal axis represents the time of arrival along the shores of Eastern Africa, and the color represents the associated probability, with dark blue the lowest probability and red the highest. The red and white bar shown in the figure is aligned along December 2015, which is when the first debris in Eastern Africa was found. And indeed, the colors in the figure do show that for a crash site of 35S latitude, the debris will start to reach Eastern Africa around December 2015.

Probability of reaching Eastern Africa for various crash site latitudes. (From CSIRO, Dec 2016.)

What is not shown in the figure is the timing of when debris will reach various locations along the shores of Eastern Africa. Instead, as can be seen in the title above the figure, all locations along the shores of Eastern Africa from 35S latitude to the Equator are grouped together. But we know that debris will reach locations further south along the shores of Eastern Africa last. In fact, CSIRO’s own model predicts by the end of December 2015, the “non-flaperon” debris, i.e., debris with low windage that floats relatively flat on the water, will reach the shores of Eastern Africa only between 1S and 12S latitudes. On the other hand, the debris was found in Mozambique at 24S latitude and in South Africa at 34S latitude, which is well outside of the range of latitudes predicted by CSIRO’s model.

CSIRO might argue that although a crash site of 35S doesn’t allow debris to reach South Africa by December 2015, a crash site of 30S, as suggested by Richard Godfrey, would have produced debris along the northern shores of Eastern Africa well before Blaine Gibson found the portion of the horizontal stabilizer (nicknamed “No Step”) in March of 2016.  In fact, debris might have arrived well before Mr Gibson’s discovery, and either was not found, was beached and later was again carried out to sea, was caught in offshore eddies, or was found and not reported. In these cases, a distinction should be made between the date of discovery and the date of arrival. Obviously, the arrival must always precede the discovery.

Based on the results of the drift models of both CSIRO and Richard Godfrey, recent claims about the most likely crash site of MH370 should be carefully reviewed by independent investigators.

Update 1 on April 24, 2017.

For those wishing to explore the drift model results in Google Earth, the KMZ files generated by CSIRO are available for the flaperon debris, for non-flaperon low windage debris, and non-flaperon high windage debris. The particular file I used to create the image at the top of the article is the file for low windage, non-flaperon items starting at 35S latitude. Once dragged into Google Earth, simply move the time slider and observe how the particles travel in time.

Update 2 on April 25, 2017.

The Guardian has published an article that discusses our interpretation of CSIRO’s results. “Both CSIRO and the ATSB have been contacted by Guardian Australia for their response.” No response has yet been received by reporter Elle Hunt.

Update 3 on April 26, 2017.

I received the following email from David Griffin of CSIRO:

Dear Victor,

I saw the Guardian article referring to your blog. A few comments:

  1. You are correct that ‘Roy’ was found at an earlier date than the model predicted. But to be fair, the model error is ‘just’ 2 months. I consider Roy’s arrival time – before anything else upstream –  to be something that is simply too hard for any present-day model to convincingly explain. You’ve seen the paths that things take. But those paths should not be interpreted too literally. Our Dec 2016 report mentions that we do not have confidence in the model’s ability to hindcast the arrival times of individual items along the African shore. That’s why we focussed on the more-robust things that the model tells us.
  2. As you correctly pointed out, a 30S crash site would, according to our model, have resulted in debris washing up on Madagascan and Tanzanian shores a full year earlier than was observed. That is a discrepancy that is hard to set aside.
  3. The other factor against 30S that we find very hard to discount is that 30S is right in the middle of the zone targeted most heavily by the surface search in 2014. This is the “other evidence” that Richard overlooked. Please see Section 4 of our Dec report, and Fig 4.2 of the April report. 

Best regards

David

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ATSB Denies Request from MH370 Families for More Info

MH370 Search Director Peter Foley (left) and ATSB Chief Commissioner Greg Hood (right)

In a new article from the Australian, we learn that Greg Hood, Chief Commissioner of the ATSB, has rejected a Freedom of Information (FOI) request from the families of Chinese passengers of MH370.  (Commenter @David alerted us to the story.) According to the story, “The documents sought are the opinions of international experts, including from the US and British air crash agencies, Boeing, aerospace group Thales, and British satellite group Inmarsat, about satellite data that automatically tracked the course of MH370.” Also, we learn that  the “ATSB general manager for strategic capability Colin McNamara in February refused The Australian’s original FOI ­request, claiming release of the ­information could ’cause damage to the international relations of the commonwealth’.”

So why would the information about MH370 requested by The Australian cause damage to international relations?

With the failure of the underwater search to locate the wreckage of MH370, it is essential that we reassess what assumptions went into the analysis that was used to define search area. This will help us to understand why the search failed, and could help us to define a new search area. A true reassessment would require independent eyes to review and analyze all the available data. While certain data sets have been publicly released, and other data sets have been leaked to the public, there are still important data sets held by the official investigators that are not available to the public. Unfortunately, the recent decision by Mr Hood reaffirms the prior decision to not make these data sets publicly available.

Included below is the complete article.

ATSB shuts down details on MH370 search

by Ean Higgins

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has invoked draconian legislation in refusing to release material about its search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, warning that any bureau ­employee who provides such ­information to the public or a court could face two years in jail.

ATSB chief commissioner Greg Hood has used the statute to reject a plea from the families of the Chinese passengers who died on MH370 that he grant a Freedom of Information request from The Australian, with the families claiming failure to do so makes Australia complicit with a cover-up by the Malaysian government.

Some ATSB officers are having second thoughts about the agency’s official line that MH370’s ­pilots were unconscious or dead at the end of the flight.

Mr Hood has declared the Transport Safety Investigation Act covers the FOI request for critical documents the ATSB claims support its “ghost flight” and “death dive” scenario, which holds the Boeing 777 went down in an unpiloted crash.

The theory has been rejected by many commercial pilots and international air crash investi­gators who believe captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah hijacked his own aircraft and flew it to the end.

The documents sought are the opinions of international experts, including from the US and British air crash agencies, Boeing, aerospace group Thales, and British satellite group Inmarsat, about satellite data that automatically tracked the course of MH370.

The ATSB says the satellite data shows MH370 was in a rapid unpiloted dive at the end, but experts such as former US captain and crash investigator John Cox have said the data is not good enough to reach that conclusion.

ATSB general manager for strategic capability Colin McNamara in February refused The Australian’s original FOI ­request, claiming release of the ­information could “cause damage to the international relations of the commonwealth”.

The association representing the families of the 153 Chinese ­victims who died when the plane went down on March 8, 2014, ­issued a statement after The Australian reported Mr McNamara’s decision, saying “we react with extreme displeasure and ­annoyance”.

“Is avoiding offending the ­Malaysian authorities more important than discovering the truth?” the families asked in the statement.

Mr Hood, in an internal ­review of Mr McNamara’s decision, also refused to release the documents. “The activities of the ATSB with respect to assisting the Malaysian investigation are covered by the TSI Act,” Mr Hood wrote in his decision.

He advised that the act holds that if a serving or former ATSB staffer or consultant “discloses ­information to any person or to a court; and the information is ­restricted” they have breached the act, which stipulates a penalty of two years in prison.

In response to an earlier ­inquiry, Mr Hood would not say whether he would allow any ATSB staff who no longer agree with the “ghost flight” and “death dive” theory to publicly express their views.

MH370 disappeared on a scheduled flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board, with its radar transponder turned off and radio communication cut after about 40 minutes.

Military radar and the satellite tracking data shows the aircraft deviated back over Malaysia to the Andaman Sea, before a long track south to the southern Indian Ocean. A $200 million search directed by the ATSB based on its “unresponsive pilots” theory failed to find the aircraft’s wreckage and was suspended in January.

When last year it was revealed the FBI had discovered Zaharie had plotted a course quite close to that track on his home computer flight simulator, the ATSB joined the Malaysian government and Malaysia Airlines to hose down suggestions this pointed to the “rogue pilot” hijack theory.

Update 1 on April 18, 2017.

A group called “The MH370 China Families” is distributing a media release that reacts to the FOI denial by the ATSB and the claim by Malaysia authorities that nothing is being hidden. They state that “In the face of a failed search outcome, contradictory evidence and Malaysian authorities’ overall approach, China families reject the Malaysian transport minister’s denial.”

The group also continues to claim that the satellite data was altered to support the theory of a crash in the SIO, citing comments posted by Emil Enchev on a physics blog site. The comments have been removed, so we don’t know the basis for his claims. I have in the past asked the group to publicly release this evidence so that it could be properly reviewed. They refused my request, citing concerns about the safety of the crew and passengers of MH370, who they think could still be alive, and could harmed by their captors if Mr Enchev’s comments were released. I explained to them that their claims could not be taken seriously without supporting evidence.

Here is the media release:

Media Release: For immediate release: MH370 China families react to Malaysian minister’s denial authorities have something to hide

China family members react with displeasure at the claim by Malaysian transport minister, Liow Tiong Lai, that the authorities have nothing to hide. Instead we point to the following indicators that they are hiding.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau, investigating MH370’s disappearance at the request of Malaysia, refused to release information under The Australian newspaper’s Freedom of Information request, claiming the release could “cause damage to the international relations of the commonwealth”.

The Southern Indian Ocean seabed search based on satellite data supplied by Inmarsat and the Malaysian government failed to find any evidence of MH370. The search was coordinated  by the ATSB October 2015 to January 2017.

China families have access to a physicists’ blog site post 28 May 2014 claiming the satellite data was altered prior to its release 26 May 2014 to support the claim by Malaysian authorities, 24 March 2014, that MH370 crashed in the Southern Indian Ocean.

The internal French report on the Réunion flaperon found that the flaperon was entirely submerged * and yet French flotation tests showed much of the flaperon above the waterline, raising serious doubts about the genuineness of the debris.

Reverse drift analyses are incompatible with the primary search zones determined by expert analysis of the purported satellite data.

Malaysian authorities are unwilling to explore the area of 25,000 sq kms, after which, according the the “First Principles Review”, November 2016, “prospective areas for locating the aircraft wreckage, based on all the analysis to date, would be exhausted.”

In the face of a failed search outcome, contradictory evidence and Malaysian authorities’ overall approach, China families reject the Malaysian transport minister’s denial.

* The report, by Pierre Daniel, 8 February 2016, obtained by China families, states «La présence de crustacés, du genre Lepas, des deux cotés du flaperon suggèrent une ligne de flottaison différente abc une pièce qui serait totalement immergée.»

“The presence of crustaceans, gender Lepas, on both sides of the flaperon suggest a different abc waterline a piece that would be completely submerged.”

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Political Friend of MH370 Captain Now Missing

An article published in Free Malaysia Today reports that Peter Chong, a close friend and fellow political activist of Captain Zaharie Shah, is now missing. Just days before his disappearance, he complained on Facebook that he was accosted by a motorcyclist and told to be careful as “nowadays a lot of people have suddenly disappeared”.

Mr. Chong and the captain were both active in the opposition party PKR, which is how they first met. The captain would reportedly spend eight or nine hours a day helping the political campaign when not scheduled to fly.

I include the contents of the article below. I hope that Mr. Chong is found quickly and is not harmed.

Missing Peter Chong a close Friend of MH370 captain

PETALING JAYA: Peter Chong, the activist who went missing last week after he had narrated an apparent veiled threat against him, is a close friend of pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah, captain of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 that mysteriously vanished three years ago.

Chong had vigorously defended Zaharie against speculations of possible responsibility over the incident in several interviews with international and local media, in the weeks after the plane disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014.

He had also attended vigils and other events dedicated to the 239 people who were aboard the missing plane.

In one photograph that had gone public, the two are shown together with Zaharie wearing a t-shirt which reads “democracy is dead”.

Chong’s family reported to the police on Saturday evening that they had not been able to contact him after he was seen leaving the house on the night of April 5.

In a Facebook posting on March 31, Chong, who likes to attend protests and candlelight vigils, had narrated how a motorcyclist accosted him earlier that morning, telling him to be careful as “nowadays a lot of people have suddenly disappeared”.

Chong, 54, had told FMT, in an interview published on March 17, 2014, that he first met Zaharie at a community event in Subang in 2012 and they soon became best of friends.

“He joined in as a volunteer and he was there cleaning and arranging the chairs,” Chong recalled.

“I realised that I had never met this guy before so I introduced myself. He told me that he worked with MAS and it was only later that I found out he was a captain.”

They were both also involved in political activism as Chong was then assistant to PKR’s Subang MP Sivarasa Rasiah, while Zaharie, a life member of PKR, campaigned for the party in the last general election in 2013.

In the interview, Chong also praised Zaharie, expressing his utmost trust in the pilot, describing him as a man who loves to share with his close friends the joy of flying.

“If I were to choose a pilot to fly me in the future I’d still choose Captain Zaharie because he is a responsible and honest guy,” he said.

The former Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) councillor had reportedly told The Australian that Zaharie would spend eight or nine hours a day helping in the election campaign when not rostered to fly.

Chong added that Zaharie was “angry at corruption and how the courts were being abused” to allegedly push politically motivated charges against PKR de facto head Anwar Ibrahim who is now serving a five-year jail sentence for a sodomy conviction.

In another interview with the BBC first broadcasted on March 10, 2014, Chong had recalled speaking to Zaharie about a week before MH370 disappeared, saying he appeared to be in good spirits.

“The whole nation and the whole world are waiting for answers,” he had said in the interview.

“What I feel cannot compare to what his family and the families of all the other passengers and crew are feeling.”

The same can now be said of Chong’s own family who are waiting anxiously for word on his whereabouts.

His disappearance comes in the wake of the suspected abductions of Pastor Raymond Koh, Amri Che Mat, Pastor Joshua Hilmy and his wife Ruth since November last year.

Clips from CCTV recordings showing Koh being abducted in a professional manner by a group of masked men on a public road in Petaling Jaya in broad daylight on Feb 13 have been widely shared via social media.

Chong had reportedly attended a recent vigil for Pastor Koh.

Electoral watchdog Bersih 2.0 had yesterday requested for an “urgent meeting” with the Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar over the mysterious disappearances of the activists.

Update 1 on April 11, 2017.

An article published on BH Online  provides more details of the police investigation. I include the article below as translated from Malay to English by Google .

Police Investigating the Disappearance of Peter Chong

KUALA LUMPUR: Police looking into the disappearance activist Peter Chong, whether a foul or otherwise, after he was last seen at his residence in Bukit Ceylon here, 6 April.

This is because, the main focus of the Kuala Lumpur police contingent at the moment is to see whether the victim actually lost or disappeared for unknown reasons.

Chairman of the Kuala Lumpur Criminal Investigation Department, Senior Assistant Commissioner Rusdi Mohd Isa, said that at present it is still not able to confirm whether there is a criminal element in the case.

“Based on preliminary information we have received, the victim does not receive any element of criminal intimidation before she was reported missing, but there was no threat to him.

“However, the focus of our investigation and the investigating his disappearance done from various angles based on the information available,” he said when contacted BH, just now.

He said it was too early to say that Peter was abducted by certain parties but did not rule out the possibility he was hiding.

“We can not disclose any details for fear that can interfere with the investigation by a special team set up involving contingent Kuala Lumpur Dang Wangi police,” he said.

Rusdi said he is confident the loss of Peter does not have any connection with the disappearance of Father Raymond Koh, who was kidnapped by a group of men in Petaling Jaya on 13 February.

So, the Kuala Lumpur police have already stated that there was no criminal intimidation, despite Mr. Chong’s Facebook post in which he complained that a motorcyclist had warned him to be careful because others have disappeared. And the police are already confident that his disappearance has nothing to do with the disappearance of other political activists.

Hopefully the Malaysian police investigation is thorough and honest and not a whitewashing of the facts.

Update 2 on April 11, 2017

Peter Chong reportedly had recently attended a vigil for Pastor Raymond Koh, a socialist activist who was recently abducted. This chilling video shows the abduction of Pastor Koh, which involved seven vehicles and at least 15 individuals. The video shows just how well-orchestrated and professional the operation was.

In a related development, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar, says the investigation into Pastor Koh’s disappearance is deadlocked because of the publicity surrounding the case, including the candle-light vigils. He angrily declares, “So once again I urge the media, individuals, and NGOs that want to get involved in kidnap cases, to shut your bloody mouths.”

Update 3 on April 12, 2017.

In a bizarre twist of events, in an article from the Malay Mail Online, the IGP is now claiming that Peter Chong was not abducted, and was photographed crossing the border into Thailand. The IGP threatened to take action against Mr. Chong if he staged his disappearance to appear as if he was abducted. The IGP also proposed that Mr. Chong might have fled the country to avoid debt. However, the IGP produced no evidence that Mr. Chong crossed the border, had staged his disappearance, or tried to avoid debt. Perhaps the evidence will eventually be released.

Here is the article in full:

IGP: ‘Missing’ activist Peter Chong in Thailand, not abducted

KUALA LUMPUR: Peter Chong, the former Petaling Jaya councillor, had crossed the Bukit Kayu Hitam border to Thailand on the day he was said to have gone missing.

Police today confirmed that immigration records and photos showed him crossing the border at 6.30am on Apr 7.

“We have immigration records and photos of him leaving the country. There is no record showing that he has returned to the country,” said Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar.

He was speaking to reporters after attending the police monthly assembly hosted by the Criminal Investigation Department.

Khalid said police are working with its Thai counterparts to investigate Chong’s motive for leaving.

“We do not know what was his intention in showing as if he was abducted. But if his motive was to create panic in the country, police will take action against him.

“I hope he will contact his family to inform them of his condition.”

Khalid also clarified that police only investigated one out of five activists who were said to have been abducted, under Section 365 for kidnapping.

“Only the Raymond Koh case is being investigated under abduction. The other four, including Chong, were classified as missing person cases as there was no proof that they were abducted,” he said, adding there is no update on Koh’s disappearance.

Koh, 62, was abducted after a group of men stopped his silver Honda Accord along Jalan SS4B/10 in Petaling Jaya.

CCTV footage of Koh’s abduction went viral on social media, showing a professionally executed abduction involving more than 10 men in three black SUVs.

Before Khalid’s statement, questions had been raised on Chong’s disappearance as well. Chong had also posted a cryptic message on his Facebook page shortly before his disappearance.

Update 4 on April 16, 2017.

In article from the New Straits Times, we learn that Peter Chong claims that he traveled to Thailand to learn more about the abduction of Pastor Koh, was himself abducted, and later released. Thankfully, he is now safe and unharmed in Malaysia. It will be interesting to see how Mr Chong’s story squares with the scenario proposed by the IGP, in which Mr Chong staged his own disappearance and fled the country to avoid debt.

Here is the article:

KUALA LUMPUR: Peter Chong, the former Petaling Jaya councillor who re-emerged today after disappearing 11 days ago, has claimed that he was abducted while in Hat Yai, Thailand, where he had been all this time.

He told police that he had gone to Hat Yai to meet a source claiming to have information on the whereabouts of Pastor Raymond Koh Keng Joo, who was allegedly abducted in Petaling Jaya, on Feb 13.

However, upon reaching the southern Thai city, Chong claims he was abducted and taken north, to Pattaya.

He said he was abruptly released in Pattaya, where he contacted his son, Darryl, who arranged for him to fly home to Malaysia.

The identity of his abductor and the motive for his alleged kidnapping is unknown.

City police chief Datuk Amar Singh confirmed the details of Chong’s statement.

Earlier today, Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar, tweeted two pictures of the activist, believed to have been taken at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) at about 1pm.

“Congratulations @PDRMsia Kuala Lumpur. “Missing” Peter Chong is back from Pattaya, this afternoon,” the tweet read.

Khalid said police recorded Chong’s statement upon his arrival at the airport.

Chong went missing on April 6, in the wake of the alleged abduction of fellow activist, Koh. Chong’s family lodged a police report a day after his disappearance.

About a week before he disappeared, Chong left a cryptic post on his Facebook page which raised fears for his safety.

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