A remarkable WW2, Fall of Malaya, Far East Prisoner of War group of eight to Deputy Commissioner G. W. Livett, Singapore Police, sometime Federated Malay States and the Malayan Union police forces, late Metropolitan Police, who served in the ranks of the Machine Gun Corps during the Great War, suffering gunshot wounds to the leg, on 12 June 1918, and at the time of his capture by the Japanese in WW2 was Police Commissioner at Kuala Lumpur. Awarded the Colonial Police Medal for Meritorious Service in 1947, he flew into Penang the following year to take charge of investigations following the murder of Chinese Dr. Ong Chong, Keng, an elected member of the Federal Legislative and Executive Councils, who was found dead with three bullet wounds in his head, and was later a key witness in the Maria Hartgh Riot Inquiry.
Group of 8: British War and Victory Medals (123505 PTE. G. R. LIVETT, MGC.); 1939-45 Star; Pacific Star; Defence Medal; WW2 War Medal; General Service Medal 1918, G.VI.R, I clasp: Malaya (D.C. G. R. LIVETT, S’PORE POLICE); Colonial Police Forces Meritorious Service Medal, G.VI.R. (GEORGE R. LIVETT, SUPT. MALAYAN UNION POLICE.), mounted as worn
Condition: Nearly Extremely Fine.
George Robert Livett, son of George Alfred Livett, a River Thames Maser of Tug Boats, was born in Greenwich, London, in 1898. He served in France & Flanders with the Machine Gun Corps in the latter stages of the Great War and was wounded in action on 12 June 1918, suffering gunshot wounds to the right thigh. On demobilisation from the Army in 1919 he joined the Metropolitan Police.
Livett was appointed Assistant Commissioner of Police, Federated Malay States, in 1928 and a 1932 directory of Malayan administration lists a “G. R. Livett – Telok Anson: G R Livett, Off.‑in‑charge Traffic, Ipoh / Ass’t Commr of Police and Officer‑in‑charge of Detectives. By the outbreak of WW2 had been promoted to Commissioner of Police at Kuala Lumpur. He was taken prisoner by the Japanese at the fall of Malaya and Singapore in February 1942 and was held at the Changi civilian camp until his release in September 1945.
During the late 1940s he was frequently mentioned in Malayan press reports in connection with policing duties — including postings in Penang and duties within the Criminal Intelligence branch in Kuala Lumpur — showing a steady senior career in the colonial police service. This was recognised by the award of the Colonial Police Medal in 1947.
Colonial Police Medal London Gazette 12 June 1947. The King has been graciously pleased, on the Celebration of His Majesty’s Birthday, to approve the award of the Colonial Police Medal to the undermentioned officer:
Superintendent George Robert Livett, Malayan Union Police Force.
In 1948 he took charge of investigations following the murder of Chinese Dr. Ong Chong, Keng, an elected member of the Federal Legislative and Executive Councils, was found last night with three bullet wounds in his head, as was reported in the Malay Herald Express on Wednesday September 1, 1948:
MALAY: AIR-GROUND ATTACK OPENED.
A COMBINED air-and-ground offensive against insurgents in Malaya began in the Kuala Lumpur district to-day.
R.A.. Beaufighters were in action against a suspected camp of insurgents near Kuala. They fired two salvoes of rockets into the target, an R.A.F. communiqué reported.
A party of police and military who were moving on a rebel camp in the Baling district of Kedah fought their way unhurt out of an ambush.
Another party, which approached from the opposite side, wounded several insurgents and captured arms.
The Straits Times of Singapore said to-day that there were 1,500 well-armed Chinese Communists in Siamese camps near the Siam- Malaya border, who were a real and serious threat to Malaya.
The Federal Government, the newspaper declared, had never asked the Siamese Government to "close the border" as had been reported from Bangkok.
The Malay language newspaper Majlis to-day condemned the British Communist Party's recent manifesto describing the Malayan | crisis as a Nationalist struggle against British Imperialism" as a poisonous slander and an utter falsehood" intended to mislead and confuse British public opinion regarding the real issue facing Malaya.
The body of Chinese Dr. Ong Chong, Keng, an elected member of the Federal Legislative and Executive Councils, was found last night with three bullet wounds in his head on the island of Penang, off the north-west coast of Malaya.
Dr. Ong was a well-known supporter of the British campaign against the Communist terrorists.
Penang had been hitherto regarded as a haven from terror- ism and many European women and children have been evacuated there from danger areas on the mainland
Less than three hours after hear- ing of the murder of Dr. Ong, the Federal Government announced a reward of 5,000 Straits dollars (£580) for information leading to the arrest of the murderers.
The deputy commissioner of the Federal Police, Mr. George Livett, former chief police officer at Penang, flew to the town to-day to take charge cf investigations.
Penang police were to-day carry- ing out a widespread search for the terrorists responsible for Dr. Ong's death. Patrol boats had been warned to prevent their escape to the mainland.
Malayan terrorists last night tried to kill Mr. Clifford Ogilvie, younger brother of Mr. Ian Ogilvie, of Aberdeen, who was murdered near Ipoh early last month.
Soon after dusk insurgents opened fire on Mr. Ogilvie's bungalow at the Muri tin mine at Jelapang, near Ipoh, but were driven off by Mr. Ogilvie and his guards.
Police later identified one of the spent bullets inside the bungalow as having been fired from the gun stolen from the bullet-ridden body of Mr. Ogilvie's 56-years-old brother.
Mr. Ogilvie, who is married, has been in sole charge of the mine since his brother, the general manager, was murdered. The widow of Mr. Ian Ogilvie left for Aberdeen in June.
Livett is cited in local Singapore newspapers in January 1949 as the “Singapore Deputy Police Commissioner (Mr. G. R. Livett)”, when he spoke publicly about the ban on “sand crackers” during Chinese New Year.
By 1950–51 Livett was serving in Singapore as Deputy Commissioner of Police. He is recorded in contemporary Singapore newspapers as returning from extended leave in August 1950 and as giving evidence to the Maria Hertogh Riot (1950) Inquiry in February 1951 as the former Deputy Commissioner, describing police actions and crowd behaviour during the disturbances.
He retired not long afterwards and returned to England and was living in Poole, Dorset, when he died in 1982.
