KOTA KINABALU: Unable to bury the hatchet as a result of a fight at a wedding seven years ago, two ex-pals are now in serious trouble – one from a severe head injury sustained during a machete attack, while the other is on the run.
The 26-year-old victim spotted his former buddy in the town area and decided to confront the latter about the episode but the situation turned ugly when his “old friend” whipped out a parang to attack him outside a hotel in the Langkon Commercial Centre at about 6.30pm on Thursday.
Kota Marudu OCPD Supt Zairolnizal Ishak said that police were now after the 35-year-old suspect who had fled the scene in a car with a false number plate.
The victim, he said, was in a stable condition and receiving treatment at the hospital.
Supt Zairolnizal said the victim was at a restaurant when he spotted the suspect and confronted him. The suspect, however, took a parang from his car and began to chase the victim.
“The suspect allegedly hit the victim on the head with the parang. The victim’s cousin, who was also at the scene, managed to snatch the parang from the suspect and stop the fight,” he added.
Police investigations showed that the victim had been holding a grudge against the suspect ever since he was allegedly beaten up by the latter at a wedding in Kampung Ranau in 2015, he revealed.
“The victim and the suspect grew up in the same village and they knew each other well.”
Supt Zairolnizal said police were looking for a man known as Ramlie Awang, from Kampung Labuan in Kota Belud, to assist in the investigation.