Contrary to what Home Minister Zahid Hamidi said, police revealed motive was drug debts, not triad wars.
- One more arrested, bringing total number nabbed to 14
- Suspects aged 16-26, including 4 women
- 7 suspects fled to Singapore, arrested by their police
- Suspects remanded for a week
- Couple arrested revealed it’s about drugs and debts, not gang wars
- Deceased was a drug dealer and loan shark, not triad leader
- Focus on hunting down main murder suspect, recovering knife and BMW
According to Bukit Aman Criminal Investigations Department (CID) director Datuk Seri Wan Ahmad Najmuddin Mohd, the murder of the 44-year-old drug dealer and loan shark at a Johor Baru petrol station last Sunday involved drugs and debts.
“Our (police) investigations revealed that the murder was sparked from a drug debt and not underworld gang rivalry as initially thought. The deceased was also not an underworld gang leader.
“The motive for the murder was established based on questioning of a couple who were earlier arrested in Penang, which was the first arrest by police in connection with the case,” he said at the Johor police contingent headquarters.
On Tuesday, Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was quoted saying by The Star that a feud between two triads may have caused the gruesome killing and that the victim was a secret society leader.
Wan Ahmad also revealed that police have detained a male suspect, who is in his 20s, in Johor Baru yesterday to assist in the murder investigation.
He said this brings the total number of suspects arrested to 14, comprising 10 men and four women aged between 16 and 26.
So far, police have recorded eight statements from the suspects and eyewitnesses, including the deceased’s 32-year-old Vietnamese wife.
Seven suspects, consisting of four men and three women, were nabbed in Singapore with the assistance of the Singapore Police Force (SPF) on Wednesday.
Wan Ahmad said the police expressed appreciation to the SPF CID officers for their help in detaining the seven suspects who had fled to Singapore.
Among the seven, two of them, aged 22 and 23, were believed to be linked to the murder. They are also believed to be related and have past records of violent assault and drugs.
Police have applied for a seven-day remand for the seven suspects.
Earlier yesterday, four men in their 20s were picked up by a police task force during a 3.45am raid at a house in Taman Johor Jaya over the murder.
On Wednesday, a couple was nabbed at a hotel in Butterworth by a team from Bukit Aman’s Special Task Force on Organised Crime.
Police obtained a seven-day remand order from the Johor Baru magistrates’ court yesterday for the six suspects.
Police investigations have now focused on tracking down the key suspect, as well as recovering the weapon and BMW 520d used in the murder.
The Malay Mail reported that informed sources said investigators are already looking at several leads in their hunt for the main suspect, a male youth believed to be in his 20s, who was directly connected with the murder.
“Overall, police are confident of solving the case soon and are wrapping-up investigations,” Wan Ahmad said.
Yesterday, the victim was buried in Jelutong, Melaka.
In a viral video of the Sunday murder, the victim was shown being assaulted next to a white BMW 520d by several people who then proceeded to run him over twice. He died at the scene.
Earlier reports:
Dec 21, JB Murder: Four More Arrested, Young Couple Well-Connected to Drug Gangs
Dec 21, JB Murder Victim Buried, Long Drug-Related Record
Dec 20, Two Held over JB Petrol Station Murder, Wake Shrouded in Mystery
Dec 19, JB Petrol Station Murder: Triad Boss Victim, Drug Dispute Motive
Dec 18, JB Petrol Station Murder: Body Claimed, Car Plate Possibly Forged
Dec 18, Police Refute Rumours of Arrests over Johor Petrol Station Murder