JOHOR BARU: A doctor has been charged with murdering his wife and four-year-old son at their home in Bandar Dato’ Onn late last month.
Chia Tong Hong, 34, nodded to indicate that he understood the charges when they were read to him before Magistrates Atifah Hazimah Wahab and A. Shaarmini here on Friday (Jan 16).
However, no plea was recorded as murder cases fall under the jurisdiction of the High Court.
He was accused of killing Phun Lai Ling, 37, and their son, Aaden Chia Yee Heng, at a house along Jalan Perjiranan 11/12 between 9.50pm and 10.34pm on Dec 30.
The charges were framed under Section 302 of the Penal Code, which carries the mandatory death penalty, or between 30 and 40 years' jail and at least 12 strokes of the cane, upon conviction.
Chia also claimed trial before Atifah Hazimah and Magistrate Nabilah Nizam to two additional charges of obstructing police investigations by allegedly disposing of his wife’s artificial fingernails and repositioning his son’s body after their deaths.
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The offences were allegedly committed at 8.10am on Dec 31 at the same house.
The obstruction charges were filed under Section 186 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum jail term of two years or a fine of up to RM10,000, or both, upon conviction; and Section 201, which carries a maximum jail term of seven years and a fine.
All three courts denied bail as murder is a non-bailable offence.
The case has been fixed for mention on March 17 for document submission pending post-mortem, DNA, chemical, forensic and toxicology reports.
On Thursday (Jan 15), Johor police chief Comm Datuk Ab Rahaman Arsad said police found the victims, a 36-year-old accountant and her four-year-old son, dead at 8.20am on Dec 31 with injuries consistent with criminal acts.
"The woman was found with a slash wound on her neck while the child had bluish marks on his face, believed to be caused by smothering," he said.
He added that both victims were pronounced dead at the scene and sent to Hospital Sultan Ismail for a post-mortem.
Comm Ab Rahaman said the autopsy found that the woman died of asphyxia-related causes while the boy died from smothering.
