Deleted WhatsApp texts between complainant, Ebit Lew irretrievable, says witness

TENOM: A witness in the sexual harassment trial involving Ebit Irawan Ibrahim Lew, popularly known as Ebit Lew, told the magistrates’ court here today the WhatsApp messages exchanged between the complainant and the preacher had been deleted and could not be retrieved.

Cybersecurity Malaysia’s responsive technology and services division chief Zabri Adil Talib, 45, testified that he conducted an analysis on two SIM cards belonging to the complainant and one belonging to Lew, using specialised software.

“The deleted messages could not be retrieved from any of the numbers. If WhatsApp messages have been deleted, they cannot be recovered due to current technological limitations,” the 15th witness said, in response to a question from deputy public prosecutor Rasyidah Murni Adzmi.

He said the analysis was carried out on three numbers following a request from investigating officer Noor Asyikin Shamsuri, who sought to trace deleted conversations within the WhatsApp application.

Zabri, who confirmed the digital forensic report for the case, said the examination was confined to the complainant’s mobile phone, as Lew’s device did not have the WhatsApp application installed.

He said the complainant’s device could only reveal the volume of WhatsApp calls, along with a record of communications and interactions with the preacher.

Lew, 39, is facing 11 charges, including outraging the modesty of a woman in her 40s by sending obscenities to her phone via WhatsApp between March and June 2021.

He is charged under Section 509 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine, or both upon conviction.

The trial before magistrate Nur Asyraf Zolhani continues on March 11.