REVENGE, ANGER BEHIND GIRL’S MURDER
Cambodian, 23, confesses to 11-year-old’s murder, say police
REVENGE and anger are believed to be the motive behind the brutal murder of 11-year-old Siti Masitah Ibrahim, whose decomposed body was found near some bushes in Tanjung Medang Kemahang, Pekan, on Saturday. State Criminal Investigation Department chief Datuk Othman Nanyan said police had detained a suspect, a 23year-old Cambodian, about 2am in Kampung Tanjung Medang Hilir here on Jan 31.
He said the suspect, who was the last person seen with Siti Masitah before she was reported missing, was a family friend who used to live in the same village.
“At first, the suspect did not admit his involvement behind Siti Masitah’s sudden disappearance but upon further questioning, he admitted to the crime. Revenge and anger towards Siti Masitah’s family are believed to be the motive behind the murder.
“A post-mortem revealed that Siti Masitah had been dead for seven to 14 days from a probable head injury.
“Three injuries were found on the left jaw, left side of the skull and behind her head,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Othman said police had seized a piece of wood believed to have been used by the suspect to hit the victim, which might have led to her death.
He said the suspect, who had no identification documents, had been remanded until Feb 17 under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder.
In the incident on Jan 30, Siti Masitah’s mother, Solihah Abdullah, 35, had lodged a police report about her missing daughter
about 11pm. She claimed that her daughter, the third of four siblings, had left home about 5pm on Jan 30 before she was spotted riding pillion on a motorcycle with the suspect.
Several hours later, police detained the suspect for questioning under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 for failing to provide any valid travel documents. On Saturday, a decomposed body was discovered at an oil palm plantation in Kampung Tanjung Medang Hilir here about 4.25pm.
Solihah said although her daughter’s body was decomposed, she was able to identify the blue dress which Siti Masitah was wearing on the day she went missing.
Othman said Siti Masitah’s body was found lying face down with her hands tied behind her back. He refuted claims that an organ trafficking syndicate was involved due to missing organs from Masitah’s body.
“We are not ruling out the possibility that the missing body parts could be due to wild animals as the body was left exposed in the open for a long time.
“Although the mother has identified Masitah’s body, the police have yet to confirm if it belonged to the missing girl as we can only do so after the DNA procedures have been completed.”
Othman said police had taken measures to search for the girl, including questioning the suspect, but could only obtain more details from the suspect after the body was discovered.