The New York Times was so sure that Captain Zaharie was pure as the driven snow that they published a piece by Robert Mackey exonerating him and falsely claiming that I had said he was a suicide bomber. They glossed over the Muslim Brotherhood links of Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, of whom Zaharie was a “fanatical” follower. But now it turns out that Zaharie is the chief suspect after all. Will Robert Mackey write a piece correcting his earlier one exonerating the captain? What do you think?
“Revealed: Captain Zaharie Shah is the ‘chief suspect’ in official MH370 investigation,” by Lillian Radulova, Daily Mail, June 22, 2014 (thanks to Marc):
The captain of MH370 is now ‘chief suspect’ in Malaysia’s official police investigation into the ongoing mystery of the Malaysia Airlines jet’s disappearance – after investigators found suspicious evidence from a flight simulator in his home.
Captain Zaharie Shah, 53, reportedly used his home simulator to practice take-off and landings in remote locations, including some airstrips in the southern Indian Ocean.
Investigators have now managed to obtain the files – which had been deleted before they swept the machine.
After more than 170 interviews, detectives determined that Captain Shah was the most likely culprit if the plane – which went missing on March 8 with 239 people on board – was lost due to human intervention, according to The Sunday Times.
The criminal inquiry completed intelligence checks on all of the people on board the flight to Beijing via Kuala Lumpur, but the only individual arousing suspicion was Captain Zaharie.
The father-of-three was found to have no social or work-related future plans, unlike the rest of the crew including his co-pilot, Fariq Hamid.
The newspaper has also stated that police were told of rumours that the captain was experiencing tensions at home with his partner and family members, however this was denied by friends and family who continue to defend him.
The criminal inquiry, which is yet to rule out other reasons for the plane’s disappearance including a mechanical failure and terrorism, has so far only released its results to foreign governments and their investigators.
‘The police investigation is still ongoing. To date no conclusions can be made as to the contributor to the incident and it would be sub judice (a legal term referring to not commenting on ongoing cases) to say so,’ Malaysian police were quoted a saying.
‘Nevertheless, the police are still looking into all possible angles.’
Captain Shah was said to be a ‘fanatical’ supporter of the country’s opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim – jailed for homosexuality just hours before the jet disappeared.
He was described as was an ‘obsessive’ supporter of Ibrahim. And hours before the doomed flight left Kuala Lumpur it is understood 53-year-old Shah attended a controversial trial in which Ibrahim was jailed for five years.
Campaigners say the politician, the key challenger to Malaysia’s ruling party, was the victim of a long-running smear campaign and had faced trumped-up charges.
Police sources have confirmed that Shah was a vocal political activist – and fear that the court decision left him profoundly upset. It was against this background that, seven hours later, he took control of a Boeing 777-200 bound for Beijing and carrying 238 passengers and crew.
It’s not the first time Captain Zaharie has been the centre of suspicion regarding the missing airline.
Varying testimonials from his family members alluding to the pilot displaying erratic behaviour a few weeks before the missing flight, as well as rumours that he has been recently estranged from his wife and family, have been both revealed and later consistently denied….
Ashley says
I’m reluctant to weigh in on this one. I’m sure we each have a theory on the fate of the plane. Please don’t judge me harshly…I merely want to share something I personally found compelling. I lifted this from the official Malaysian Airlines FB site and sure would welcome/appreciate feedback.
Islam_Macht_Frei says
The patent shows that it was assigned to the employer – this is 100% standard practice, and the fact that the inventors are dead or alive has no bearing on the fact that the employer owns the rights. In fact, if the inventors had a stake, upon their deaths their ownership would have transferred to their heirs, not to their employer, so once again their being alive or dead would not affect the company’s ownership of the intellectual property. This seems like standard conspiracy theory BS.
marc says
debunked here with original sources:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/conspiracy/malaysiapatent.asp
gravenimage says
Thanks, Marc.
Jacksonl03 says
Sorry Ashley: Doesn’t make a lot of sense to invent and carry out a complex conspiracy involving the murder of some 240 people to obtain patents that, as it turns out, didn’t belong to four of the murdered anyway. But even assuming the murder of the inventors would have been beneficial to someone, why not simply make the four disappear?
Great story though.
Mirren10 says
I’m a great believer in Occam’s Razor.
The idea that the ‘military-industrial complex’ ( biiig giveaway, right there) would go to all this trouble simply to remove four men because of **patent** rights, seems to me to be ridiculous. If the ‘military industrial complex’ (leftard speak for society in general) is so well-organised and evil, why not just murder the four men, and make it look like accident, or natural causes ? Easy enough to do, if they are so well organised !
Plus, there is a sideswipe at the 9/11 Truther claptrap, with the reference to Bush and Bin Laden being in cahoots, and the murder of 3000 Americans was a plot by the government. (Or Bush in cahoots with Bin Laden).
I agree with Islam_Macht_Frei, ”standard conspiracy theory BS”.
Mirren10 says
Also:
” I lifted this from the official Malaysian Airlines FB site … ”
For me, that makes it hugely suspicious, right away. The Malaysian government attempting to deflect blame onto the wicked Americans !
Ashley says
Thanks guys! Marc…thank you for providing the Snopes link.
Yeah…now a feel foolish for posting the video link. It did strike me as more than just a little “out there” but I wanted to hear what others had to say.
Mirren10 says
Absolutely **no** need to feel ‘foolish’, Ashley.
It behooves us all to note, and question, whatever claptrap is posted, put on youtube, whatever, by fools and useful idiots.
I’m glad you drew our attention to it.
gravenimage says
I agree with Mirren, Ashley. Never feel shy about asking questions here.
marc says
I’m not surprised people fall for them.
Well funded these conspiracy theories aren’t they? feeding off peoples rightful fear that they are being misled by the media and governments.
If in doubt apply Occam’s Razor as Mirren10 has said, the only thing we don’t know is where the plane and passengers are, at the bottom of the ocean or hidden away somewhere in backwardistan.
We know the who and the why, just not the where.
Jay Boo says
President Obama mocked the CNN coverage of the missing Malaysian jet during a White House correspondents Dinner. as being excessive.
http://thatsenuff.com/index.php/2014/05/president-obama-mocks-cnns-malaysia-coverage-richard-sherman-during-white-house-correspondents-dinner/
gravenimage says
Jay Boo wrote:
President Obama mocked the CNN coverage of the missing Malaysian jet during a White House correspondents Dinner. as being excessive.
…………………………….
I’ve seen the same sneering about Benghazi.
All politics and possible conclusions aside, does anyone else find the mocking of coverage where *people died* to be profoundly disturbing?
I’d expect yahoos hanging around on the corner to make fun of this sort of thing, but when did it become acceptable for serious pundits and politicians—including *the president of the United States* to sneer like this?
Jay Boo says
Why would President Obama mock the CNN coverage of the missing Malaysian jet during a White House correspondents Dinner as being excessive?
Puppet NPR joined in later attempting to smear CNN.
el-cid says
The evidence presented to the press since the beginning is consistent with this theory, in particular, the observation that radio communication was halted deliberately.
Assuming this was a “rogue” act by one of the faithful seeking his place in paradise through a holy act of Jihad, then any religious Muslim is a ticking time bomb that could strike any where at random.
As long as they believe this in this stupid ideology, they are dangerous.
Brian Hoff says
Chaseing after Ghosts. I watch than U-Tude video where the america air crak investor show they bliar by saying than air crask in Indonesia was poit suide. It turn out to be fault america make hardware.
gravenimage says
“Brian Hoff” wrote:
Chaseing (sic) after Ghosts. I watch than (sic) U-Tude (sic) video where the america (sic) air crak (sic) investor (sic) show they (sic) bliar (sic) by saying than air crask (sic) in Indonesia (sic) was poit (sic) suide (sic). It turn out to be fault (sic) america (sic) make (sic) hardware.
…………………………….
“Brian Hoff”—really, “DefenderofIslam”—is even more illiterate than usual here.
Proof, please, that the Malaysian Airlines crash “turn out to be fault (sic) america (sic) make (sic) hardware”. How could such a thing be determined when the plane has never been found?
And no possible mechanical failure would explain the behavior of the pilots, in any case.
Prinz Eugen says
The media abandoning a story again — does not fit their template. Can we be
absolutely certain that Ted Cruz, Sarah Palin or the Koch bros. were NOT INVOLVED here?
Nothing to see here, move on.
Mazo says
Your media promoted Anwar Ibrahim and the Malaysian opposition because they were furious that the ruling Malaysian UMNO leaders like Mahatir and Hishamuddin dare to say that China was not a threat, but that it is America which is causing tensions and bullying other countries in the region. Hishamuddin said that China’s patrols in scs were of no concern to Malaysia
Your media doesn’t support Islam- it hates China.
Angemon says
“The captain of MH370 is now ‘chief suspect’ in Malaysia’s official police investigation into the ongoing mystery of the Malaysia Airlines jet’s disappearance – after investigators found suspicious evidence from a flight simulator in his home.”
If the airplane was indeed hijacked (as it seems to be the case) then the deed was done by either one or more passengers or someone in the flight crew. Considering how difficult it should be to enter the cockpit by force, then the most likely option is someone in the flight crew with cockpit access. And considering the cryptic last sentence and the IT evidences, then Saha seems to be the most likely suspect.
Jerry says
What is the exact scientific label for mass homicidal rage combined with a death-wish in the imagined service of an imagined deity in response to the slightest real or imagined insult?