KUALA LUMPUR: Police believed the suspect behind the murder of a two-year-old girl, who was found with her head severed, drowned in Sungai Klang while trying to escape.
A passer-by found the girl's body beside the river near the KTM station in Jalan Hishammudin at about 9pm on Thursday.
According to a witness, the suspect was earlier seen carrying the girl towards the river.
City CID chief Senior Asst Comm Gan Kong Meng said the witness saw the suspect forcing the girl to lie on the ground and using something to hit her on her head and neck.
Several people who saw the incident rushed to try to save the girl but the suspect continued hitting her, he said.
The suspect fled by jumping into the river when he saw people rushing to him.
"The witnesses tried to follow the suspect along the river and he was seen struggling in the water," SAC Gan said adding that they saw the suspect being carried away by the currents.
SAC Gan said police received a call at 9pm from people who saw a man trying to drown a child at the location.
A police team who arrived at the scene found a fully-clothed girl lying face-down with her head severed from the body.
SAC Gan said police found several broken pieces of ceramic with traces of blood and a pair of slippers believed to belong to the suspect.
"After investigations, we managed to track the mother of the victim," he said adding that the 32-year-old woman was unemployed and homeless.
SAC Gan said the mother told police that she had gone to a shopping complex in Pudu at about 3pm.
"She went to the toilet and asked her friends to watch over the girl. When she returned about five minutes later, she realised that the girl was not with her friends," he added.
SAC Gan said that the mother then searched for the girl together with her friends in the shopping complex but she was nowhere to be found.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Get 20% OFF The Star Digital Access
Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Unlimited access with perks.
