The police are acting swiftly to solve the case of slain policeman Lance Corporal Valentino Mesa as the victim’s family mourns his sudden demise.
Valentino’s father last saw his son in June during the Gawai Dayak celebration.
“My son would often call me to catch up on family matters or for just a casual chat,” the Borneo Post Online quoted Mesa Ugong as saying at Sibu Airport on Thursday night where family members had gathered to receive the remains of the slain policeman.
However, Valentino never mentioned about having problems, Mesa, 53, said.
Valentino, 29, was found stabbed and shot at a community police station in USJ on Thursday.
A Sarawakian who had served on the force for seven years, he was found lying in a pool of blood at the inquiry counter of the station where he had been on duty by a patrol unit at 3.25am.
Valentino was alone at the station when he was killed and his pistol was missing.
The station is located in an industrial area crowded with car workshops and shoplots.
Mesa said he received the shocking news from his other son, who found out about the incident from Valentino’s wife.
Valentino’s body was flown to Sibu Airport at 7.45pm on Thursday.
His remains were received by family members, relatives, friends and members of the police force.
Deputy state police commissioner Mohd Dzuraidi Ibrahim led his men in giving the final salute to the slain cop.
The New Straits Times reported that Valentino was said to have been brutally attacked with a sharp weapon before he was shot execution style in the back at close range.
Preliminary checks by the police at the scene revealed he was slashed once on his forehead and five times at the back of his head.
It is believed that Valentino was shot in the back when he was lying face down on the floor after being slashed.
Police recovered fragments of the bullet fired at the victim on the floor where his body was found at the station’s front desk counter.
Also found was a 9mm bullet casing, believed to have been fired from the victim’s own Walther P99 service pistol.
The semi-automatic firearm is believed to have been taken by his attacker.
Police detained a man in his 30s from Sibu, Sarawak, in connection with the murder at 1am on Friday, reportedly at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
The man is believed to be a relative of the victim with whom he has a family dispute.
He will be remanded until Sep 7.
It is unclear if the missing firearm has been recovered following the arrest.
Valentino’s case was the second murder in a month involving a policeman.
On Aug 18, Abu Hashim Ismail, a CID detective from Bukit Aman, was shot dead while at his friend’s house in Taman Sri Hosba, Changlun.
Earlier report: Aug 31, Cop Shot Dead at Subang Jaya Police Station
Related report: Aug 20, Two Suspects in Cop Killing Surrender Themselves