KUALA LUMPUR, April 29 — Four Malaysians — including one identified as an auxiliary police constable with the Royal Malaysian police — were arrested by Indonesian authorities last Friday in connection to a murder in Batam, the Jakarta Post reported today.
The English-language daily reported that the four suspects are believed to be colleagues of the victim, Amar Aswan, 29, also a Malaysian citizen.
Amar was found dead on a trolley in his room at the hotel he was staying. Autopsy results found that he had been gagged and his head had sustained serious impact, the news report said.
“We are still investigating the motives behind the killing. According to the suspects, the victim was involved in a quarrel with them in a night spot and hit one of them,” Barelang City Police chief Senior Commander Asep Safrudin was quoted as saying.
“They could not tolerate this, and after the victim returned to his hotel, they assaulted him. But we will find out whether there were other motives, such as links to drug-trafficking,” he added.
Asep said security guards at the BCC Hotel and Residence hotel in Batam informed police about the incident early last Tuesday, leading to the arrests of the suspects at two international ports as they attempted to return to Malaysia.
Screen capture of a video showing the murder suspects being led by police officers.
The auxiliary police constable and another individual were already en route to Stulang Laut in Johor Bharu when their ferry was intercepted by a Water Police unit.
The two other suspects were apprehended at the Harbour Bay Port in Batu Ampar, Batam while waiting for their ferry which was also bound for Stulang Laut.
It is understood that the Barelang City Police have asked their Malaysian counterparts for information on the four suspects, including any criminal records.
The suspects are expected to be charged with premeditated murder, which carries a sentence of between 20 years and life in prison in Indonesia.
