Missing private investigator P Balasubramaniam's nephew R Kumaresan today declined to reveal the whereabouts of his uncle to the police.

"Kumaresan will only reveal the information at an appropriate time and possibly only to a royal commission because the information might jeopardise the safety of his uncle," said his lawyer N Surendran.

kumaresan missing pi nephew pc 150708 02 "I cannot reveal the full details to the police and by doing this I understand what the consequences are… but if I do reveal everything I know what will happen to them (Balasubramaniam and family)?" said Kumaresan ( second from left ).

Kumaresan was speaking to reporters outside the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) in Kuala Lumpur where he was summoned to give a statement.

"After weighing the pros and cons I decided to face the consequences. For me, their safety is more important because it involves five lives," said the 27-year-old IT professional.

According to Surendran, the police pelted Kumaresan with questions regarding the voluntariness of the statutory declarations made by Balasubramaniam.

The first declaration on July 1 linked Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to the murder of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu.

On July 3, he made another declaration claiming that his first declaration was made under duress and contained inaccurate statements.

Following this, the private investigator went missing together with his wife and three children.

Balasubramaniam was hired by political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, a close confidant of Najib and of the three standing trial for the murder.

'Another fishing expedition'

Meanwhile, the police also queried Kumaresan on whether the private investigator was threatened, induced or persuaded in making the declarations.

p balasubramaniam private investigator najib razak baginda altantuya murder case 3 "Certain questions he was not able to divulge the answers to the police and will only do it to a royal commission or when he knows his uncle is safe," said Surendran.

Kumaresan also stressed that his recent telephone conversation with Balasubramaniam was "private and confidential" and added that his uncle had affirmed that he was safe and is currently overseas.

"I know where he is but I cannot say it," he said.

DAP parliamentarian M Manogaran who accompanied Kumaresan said "the paramount consideration is the safety of Balasubramaniam and his family.

"This is just another fishing expedition by the police." he claimed.

"He (Kumaresan) wants a different forum to reveal the information because this is a very high profile case," added the Teluk Intan MP.

He said that Kumaresan was not withholding information but was "just not prepared to jeopardise to the safety of his uncle out of concern".

Kumaresan also raised his concerns over the absence of a Whistleblowers Protection Act.