Six nabbed over suspected abuse, death of 5-yearold disabled girl

KUALA LUMPUR: The father and grandaunt of a disabled five- year- old girl were among six individuals arrested to facilitate investigation into the girl’s tragic death at a house in Kampung Sungai Cincin, Gombak, here recently.

The brutal act against the girl who was diagnosed with Hydrocephalus disease, an excess brain fluid from birth, was uncovered after her grandaunt found her unconscious in the living room of the house on Dec 30 last year.

Gombak district police chief ACP Arifai Tarawe said that the girl was confirmed dead by the Orang Asli Hospital Gombak medical team before her body was sent to Kuala Lumpur Hospital for post- mortem.

He said that the post- mortem found that the cause of death was due to rupture of the intestines, and there were old and new scars on the victim’s body, believed to be due to abuse.

“The investigation led the police to believe that the 55year- old Indonesian woman, who is also the victim’s grandaunt, was the main suspect and detained her on Jan 1 along with the girl’s father, who works as a lorry driver, and four other individuals to assist in the investigation,” he told reporters at a press conference at Rawang police station, here yesterday.

He said that the initial investigation found that the girl, the youngest of three siblings, lived with her sister and father at their grandaunt’s house after his parents divorced in 2017.

The investigation also found that the victim was abused using a cane in addition to blunt force trauma to the stomach that led to severe damage to her intestines.

Arifai said that the victim’s sister is currently at Selayang Hospital for examination to check whether she is also a victim of abuse.

“All of them were remanded for six days until tomorrow ( today) and the case is being investigated under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder,” he said.