KOTA KINABALU: Police are still searching for the remaining body parts of a 44-year-old woman whose remains were found in two separate dustbins at the Indah Permai shophouses in Sepanggar on Thursday (Feb 12).
Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Jauteh Dikun said they have yet to get the 71-year-old suspect to pinpoint the specific area where he dumped the dismembered body parts, as he is currently undergoing treatment at Queen Elizabeth Hospital here.
“Police are continuing the search for two more body parts of the victim, as well as the machete believed to have been used by the suspect,” he said, adding that police teams, including the Forensic Unit and the K9 Unit, are still combing several identified locations.
The woman, who holds an IMM13 immigration pass issued to Filipino refugees in the 1970s, was allegedly murdered by the suspect, her ex-fiancé, following an argument over RM7,000 he had paid for their engagement.
The victim was buried by her family members on Friday (Feb 13), and her son said that her left leg and right arm were still missing.
“Mama’s body was still incomplete. We had to proceed with the burial because any further delay was not possible. What was missing were her left leg and right arm,” the son said in a live broadcast on TikTok on Friday night.
The victim had broken off her engagement with the suspect and married another man in January this year, according to her son, who also claimed that the engagement money had been returned to her ex-fiancé.
Police arrested the suspect at Queen Elizabeth Hospital at 8.10pm, hours after the discovery of the chopped-up body parts, which had been thrown into dustbins in Indah Permai and discovered by rubbish collectors at 7am on Thursday.
The suspect’s 19-year-old son was also detained to assist in the murder investigation.
Jauteh said that the victim’s family can contact or meet the investigating officer to obtain further updates on the case.
He said police investigations are ongoing, but they cannot proceed with further questioning of the suspect because he remains ill.
“Further questioning will only be carried out with the approval of the doctors treating the suspect once his health condition improves,” he added.
He also urged members of the public with any information related to the case to come forward and assist investigations by contacting the Kota Kinabalu District Police Headquarters (IPD) at 088-529222 or the hotline at 019-2182728.
