KOTA KINABALU: A Year One Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) student has been found dead after he was believed to have fallen from the ceiling of a hall onto the stage on Thursday (Dec 18).
Kota Kinabalu OCPD Asst Comm Kasim Muda said police received a distress call from the university at around 10am after two maintenance workers found the student unconscious inside the UMS Chancellor's Hall.
The 23-year-old victim was taken to the Women and Children’s Hospital in Likas where he was pronounced dead at around 11.10am.
“Initial examination found no external injuries on the victim, except those believed sustained from a fall,” he said in a statement.
ACP Kasim said a check on the university’s CCTV recording found that the student had fallen at around 6pm on Wednesday.
“It is unclear what he was doing above the walls near the ceiling, and police are calling for witnesses to come forward and facilitate investigations.
The case is being investigated under sudden death for the time being, ACP Kasim said, while urging the public against speculating or spreading unverified information regarding this matter.
In a Facebook post, UMS issued a condolence message for the victim, whom they identified as Aiman Hakim bin Norazam, a student at its Science and Technology Faculty.
The university’s corporate communication department also issued a statement calling for the public to respect the privacy of the deceased’s family.
It also urged against the spread of any speculative or unclarified information which could disrupt probes.
“The safety, welfare and well-being of students have always been a priority of UMS. The university is committed to ensuring a safe and conducive campus environment by adhering strictly to the safety standard operating procedures,” it said.
It stated that further actions would depend on the findings of investigations into this incident.
“UMS conveys its deepest condolences to the families affected by this tragic incident,” UMS said, adding that they would give their full support and cooperation to the police throughout their investigation and make public announcements when and if required.
