More arrests likely over murder of NS trainee

KUANTAN: More arrests may be made over the murder of a National Service trainee at the Pinggiran Pelangi camp in Muadzam Shah, according to the police.

Pahang deputy CID chief Supt Mohd Haris Daud said the police would interview the teacher who sent Muhammad Suhaimi Norhamidi to hospital after he was found sprawled on the bathroom floor of his hostel.

The camp commandant and other trainers would also be questioned while statements would be taken from trainees who might have witnessed the assault in the dormitory, Supt Mohd Haris added.

“We want to find out if any trainee had recorded the incident on his cellphone,” he said when contacted.

Supt Mohd Haris said initial investigations pointed to three trainees, aged 17, 18 and 21, as the main suspects.

Two of them had received treatment as their hands were fractured due to the blows they were believed to have landed on Muhammad Suhaimi.

“As the case is of public interest, we will try our best to wrap up investigations before the remand period is over on Sept 30,” he said.

It is learnt that 18-year-old Muhammad Suhaimi was probably attacked in his dormitory and had his head banged repeatedly against a cupboard, causing internal injuries leading to his death. He was believed to have staggered to the bathroom after the attack and collapsed on the floor.

Family members of the three suspects have been informed of their detention in the police lock-up. Police investigations so far revealed that Muhammad Suhaimi jumped the queue during breakfast on Sunday.

A group of trainees then took it upon themselves to teach him a lesson and beat him up.

The post-mortem showed that he died from internal bleeding in the head due to blunt force trauma.