Escapee drowns in sewage pond

NORAZMI Azman was supposed to be sent to a drug rehabilitation centre in Tampoi, Johor.

The 23-year-old from Malacca, however, managed to escape from custody after jumping out of a police van on Wednesday. The incident occurred in Jalan Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur. He fled on foot.

Yesterday, his body was found inside an Indah Water Konsortium plant in Pantai Dalam by a worker who alerted police.

Earlier, the worker had discovered something blocking the plant's conduit, used to separate rubbish from sewage.

The worker was shocked to find the body, which was still clad in a lock-up T-shirt.

Brickfields police chief Assistant Commissioner Sulaiman Junaidi said the deceased was charged with a drug offense.

"Norazmi escaped from a police van while returning from Jalan Duta Court Complex at 4pm yesterday (Wednesday)," he said. The court had earlier ordered the deceased to be sent to Tampoi rehabilitation centre.

"After the court proceedings, he was handcuffed before being taken to the police van," he added.

However, Norazmi managed to free himself while on the way back to Hang Tuah lock-up. He pushed aside a policeman in the van before jumping out.

Sulaiman said the incident happened close to the court complex and a massive search failed to locate him.

Sulaiman said Norazmi was believed to have slipped and drowned in a sewage pond several hours after escaping.

Initial investigations showed no signs of struggle or injuries on the victim's body. Police are waiting for a post-mortem report on the cause of death.

"We do not suspect foul play, but a probe is underway. We will record statements from the policemen who escorted him on Wednesday," he added.

Source: Malay Mail newspaper

No action against bloggers unless they break the law

KUALA LUMPUR: The authorities cannot take any action against bloggers unless they break the law, said Energy, Communications and Water Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik.

"There is nothing we can do. What do you want me to do? Block the whole thing? If they break the law and we know who they are, we will go after them."

"You want to listen to all these fellows, the lies and misinformation? You get confused and you do not know what is the truth, half-truth or lies. But as you become more knowledgeable, you can differentiate (them)," he said.

Dr Lim was asked about bloggers who posted wrong information about Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who was overcome by heat exhaustion on Sunday.

He urged the public to be selective on the information on the Internet as "good knowledge come together with bad knowledge."

"I get a lot of questions like minister you have to stop this and stop that. I can't stop because knowledge good or bad, come together," he said.

He said parents should discipline their children while adults must discipline themselves.

"Through the Internet, you select the knowledge and not the minister who pushes the knowledge to you," he told reporters after opening the APT Policy and Regulatory Forum 2007 and World Telecommunication and Information Society Day.

Source: Star newspaper

Four killed, one hurt in head-on collision

KUCHING: Four people, including two children,were killed and another child seriously injured when the car they were in as involved in a head-on collision with a lorry near Taman Malihah yesterday.

Two of the victims were identified as Chong Siew Kee, 47, and her niece, 22-year-old Law Siew Hui.

The two other victims were a 2-year-old boy and an 8-month-old infant while a 3-year-old is in a critical condition. All children are believed to be Law's children. however, police have withheld their identities.

A police spokesman said the Honda Civic by Chong was believed to have veered into the path of the oncoming lorry along Jalan Batu Kawa-Matang.

Rescuers took more than an hour to extricate the bodies from the mangled wreck.

Efforts to speak to family members at the Sarawak General Hospital mortuary proved futile as they were overcome with grief.

Police have detained the 50-year-old lorry driver.

Source: NST newspaper
Pictures: NST newspaper, Star newspaper

Cops ram into brothers

BALING: A high-speed chase ended with a police car crashing into the vehicle they wee pursuing, and ploughing into the two brothers on a motorcycle who were returning home after school.

The siblings, identified as Mohamad Nazri Mustaffa, 17, and his younger brother Mohamad Naziman, 16, who was riding pillion, were killed instantly.

Mohamad Nazri's twin, Mohamad Nazirul, could only watch in horror as his brothers were killed on the spot.

He was riding pillion on another motorcycle an was several metres behind his brothers.

The boys, all students of SM Kuala Pegang, had just left their school at 1pm when the incident occured at a junction in Kampung Landak.

Perak acting police chief Datuk Hadi Ho Abdullah said the drama unfolded about noon when a police car with three policemen inside, responded to a call from Gerik police station.

The call was about the suspects in a Proton Waja who were behaving suspiciously in the town area.

"The policemen spotted the car 15 minutes later in Gerik town. On seeing the patrol car approaching them, the Proton Waja sped off," Hadi said.

A 60km high-speed chase then ensued along the new Gerik-Kupang highway.

He said the driver of the police car lost control of his vehicle when the driver of he Proton Waja slammed on his brakes.

The impact caused both cars to skid several metres before the police car ploughed into the bothers.

Although their car was a total wreck, he suspects managed to flee on foot to nearby village where they sped off on a stolen motorcycle. One of the suspects was captured five hours later.

Hadi described the incident as unfortunate. He said case was being investigated by Baling police.

It i learnt that Baling police had recorded statements from the three policemen who escaped unhurt.

Source: NST newspaper
Pictures: NST newspaper, Star newspaper

Orang utan gets eye op

THE world's first- ever cataract operation on an orang utan was conducted by ophthalmologist Dr Izak Venter and anaesthesiologist Dr Frik Stegmean, both from South Africa, at the Matang Wildlife Centre in Kuching.

Dr Venter, from the Medical Centre Group of Hospitals in South Africa, said the operation on the orang utan, named Aman, was to save the primate's eyesight. The three-hour operation yesterday was successful, he sad.

Aman's cataract problem was detected in March and Dr Venter had examined the primate's eyes and its health to see whether the operation was possible.

According to Dr Venter, the cataract operation using the pharcoemulsification procedure had been generally successful with patients with better eyesight.

He said animals responded differently after an operation with taking longer to regain their eyesight.

Aman, which was rescued from a market in Sarawak in 1989, had been kept at the Semenggoh Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre before being transferred to the Matang Wildlife Centre in December 2000. - Bernama

Source: Malay Mail newspaper

Pictures: Malay Mail newspaper, NST newspaper

RM500,000 worth of cocaine found in man's stomach

KUALA LUMPUR: A Peruvian national arrived in Malaysia from Buenos Aires via Johannesburg, breezed through Customs and Immigration undetected with RM500,000 worth of cocaine in his stomach.

The trafficker, in his late 20s thought he had escaped as he got into a taxi from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport to Petaling Street about 7am on Tuesday.

The trafficker, however, did not realise that he was being followed by a team of officers from the city police's narcotics department.

After getting out of the taxi in Jalan Petaling, he made a call from a telephone booth and was nabbed as soon as he stepped out.

He was sent to the Kuala Lumpur Hospital where he was subjected to an X-ray examination which showed foreign objects in his intestines.

He was given laxative and several minutes later, the trafficker passed out about 50 pellets of cocaine.

A source told the New Straits Times that the pellets were made out of paper, rubber, plastic and wax which were unbreakable and waterproof.

Previously, the traffickers used condoms but they were unreliable as they were instances when the drugs seeped out. This could endanger the lives of the traffickers.

Initial investigations revealed that the suspect had swallowed about 2kg of cocaine which is double the normal amount swallowed by the drug traffickers.

It is believed that the Peruvian may have swallowed that amount in order to receive a bigger pay-off.

It is also learnt that the traffickers does not speak English and that police are looking for a Spanish-speaking interpreter to question him.

He is currently under heavy police guard at the hospital as they wait for the rest of the cocaine to be passed out.

Police are also trying to track the person who the Peruvian contacted. They believe he could also be a member of international drug trafficking syndicate.

Federal Narcotics director Datuk Abang Abdul Wahap Abang Julai confirmed the arrest but declined to elaborate.

It is learnt that police had contacted the Peruvian Embassy to notify them of the arrest and to get more information on the trafficker.

This is the second case this month.

A week ago, a businessman was caught in KLIA, trying to smuggle 70 heroin-filled condoms out of he country.

The locale's ploy failed when he was slopped by Customs officers who noticed him behaving suspiciously near the international departure hall.

A body search was conducted and the man, in his 40s, confessed he had swallowed 70 condoms containing heroin worth RM500,000.

He was immediately rushed to the Seremban Hospital. He is being detained for investigations.

Source: NST newspaper

Decapitated body found at illegal dumpsite

A HIGHLY decomposed and decapitated body was found by a passer-by behind some bushes near Taman Taming Jaya's industrial area in Balakong yesterday.

A police spokesman said they received a call about the body at 10.20am and a forensics's team from Bukit Aman was dispatched to the scene.

The deceased, who identity has yet to be ascertained as no personal documents were found on him, is believed to have been dead for about two weeks.

It is believed the body was wrapped using a mat before he was dumped into the bushes, which is also used as an illegal dump site.

The deceased was clad in a white shirt and blue trousers.

Police found the deceased head about 5m from the body.

The body was sent to Serdang Hospital.

Kajang police chief Assistant Commissioner Rosli Mohd Nizam said they were waiting for the post-mortem before proceeding with investigation.

Those with information on the case can contact Kajang police at 03-87392222 or the nearest police station.

Source: Malay Mail newspaper

Bogus cop rapes 11-year-old

SHAH ALAM: Her innocence and trusting nature cased her to endure an hour of hell at the hands of a sex predator.

The 11-year-old schoolgirl believed the man when he said he was a policeman. He wanted directions and the girl readily got into his car to show him where a shop was located.

The culprit, however, drove her to a car park in Sungai Buloh, tied her up with her head scarf, taped her mouth and raped her in the car.

When he was finished, he threw her out of the car before driving away.

The bleeding, traumatised girl was spotted by a passer-by who contacted her uncle after getting the telephone number from her.

The Year Five student is now recuperating at the University Malaya Medical Centre. The girl, who is the younger of two siblings, is also being counselled.

The incident occurred about 11.30am on Monday at a flat in Jinjang where the victim had just left her home for school.

She was approached on the ground floor by a man in his 20s who identified himself as a policeman.

Selangor deputy CID chief ACP Chee Cheng Wan confirmed the incident and advised parents to educate their children, especially those below the age of 12, on the dangers of being too trusting of strangers.

"The are rapists on the prowl and children should be supervised at all times. If this cannot be done, then parents must ensure than they move around in groups.

"They should be taught to be wary of strangers, especially those who claim to be lost or need directions."

Che also advised parents to tell their children that policemen cannot order children to follow them.

"This is not normal procedure.

"Policemen do not usually approach children, unless the latter approaches them."

Source: NST newspaper

Trio from big drug ring held

PENANG: Police have arrested three men believed to be among the main members a big drug syndicate operating in the northern and central regions of Malaysia.

State Narcotics Department chief Supt S. Batumalai said the men, aged between 32 and 37, were arrested in two places, and 3.2kg of heroin No. 3 with a street value of nearly RM300,000 was seized from them.

"We believe the syndicate has been in operation in the region for the past six to seven months and was supplying heroin to Kedah, Penang and Perak and even the Klang Valley," he told reporters in his office yesterday.

He said information obtained from the three suspects might help police to close on the syndicate's mastermind, who is believed to be hiding in a neighbouring state.

Batumalai said the first suspect is a 32-year-old security guard arrested at about 8.30pm on April 27 while waiting for a buyer at the Queensbay Mall car park in Bayan Baru.

"We found 900gm of heroin No. 3 with RM80,000 in his possession," he said. "He has been charged under Section 39(B) of the 1952 Dangerous Drug Act.

"The other two, aged 35 and 37, were arrested at a hotel in Prai last Thursday in a raid jointly conducted by the state and Bukit Aman narcotics division.

"The success was due to a tip-off and both suspects were arrested during the raid at 6.15pm in a hotel room as they were waiting for their prospective buyers."

Police seized 2.3kg of heroin No. 3 worth RM200,000 from the duo. They also seized a motorcycle belonging to one of the suspects.

Batumalai said the syndicate is believed to be supplying heroin to hardcore addicts who used the syringe and sometimes the "smoke-chasing" technique - sniffing the vapour of heated heroin.

He said the suspects are under remand and are expected to be charged soon. - By Mohd Tajudin

Source: The Sun newspaper

Man loses car to con man with sob story

A RESTAURANT owner was taken in by a sob story and lent his car to a man he had met only four hours earlier.

L. Vijayakumar, 43, said he was approached by the man, who claimed to be a businessman in the information technology field, at his restaurant in Brickfield in January. The man pleaded to borrow his white Proton Iswara.

The man said he needed to use the car to transport computers from Malacca because his car had been damaged in a flood in Johor.

Feeling sorry for the man, who introduced himself as A. Nagarajah, 27, from Negeri Sembilan, Vijayakumar agreed to lend his car for two days from Jan 17.

Nagarajah left his contact number and what he said were his mother's and girlfriend's contact numbers with Vijayakumar. He even left a photocopy of his identity card.

Vijayakumar called Nagarajah two days later, but the man asked to keep the car for another eight days.

"I was afraid that if I didn't agree, he would not return my car," said Vijayakumar.

"But after that, I could no longer contact him. I tried calling his mother. Imagine my horror when the woman accused Nagarajah of stealing her jewellery and advised me to make a police report."

Vijayakumar lodged a report a Brickfields police station. He also checked the records on Nagarajah at Jalan Bandar traffic police headquarters.

"I was shocked to find that the man had more than 20 traffic summonses and an arrest warrant under his name."

Vijayakumar said following the incident, he is unable to claim his car's insurance and faces difficulty carrying out his restaurant business. - By KALBANA PERIMBANAYAGAM

Source: Malay Mail newspaper

Sisters kidnapped and forced into sex trade

KLANG: Two underage sisters will never forget March 29, a date that has been search into their memory for life.

Their ordeal began at 8.30pm that night when they were abducted outside their home here by several men and taken on a terror ride that changed their lives forever.

They were taken to a double-storey house here and raped by their captors. The next morning, the secondary students were forced into prostitution. For the next 45 days, they had sex with scores of customers at all hours of the day.

They could not escape as they were under the watchful eyes of their kidnappers. Their chance to flee came on Friday when their captors went out, leaving them alone in the house.
It is understood that the sisters opened the door and walked out to freedom - but they did not know where they were.

So, they hid in bushes near the house, waiting for cars to come by.

A passer-by discovered them the next morning and sent them to district police headquarters where their statements were recorded. Police then sent them to the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital for a medical examination.

Selangor assistant CID chief ACP Chee Cheng Wan confirmed the incident. It is learnt that police believe the suspects were locals and are trying to identify them.

Source: NST newspaper

Transfer denied. Now he's DEAD

HE had told his mum that someone wanted him dead.

Fearing for his life, Constable Mohd Roszaidi Mohd Rasol, 23, begged to be transferred out of his Beaufort police station in Sabah.

He wrote four letters to Bukit Aman regarding his transfer request but heard nothing.

On May 10, Mohd Roszaidi called his mother, Zubaitha Othman, 41, in Rawang, and told her that someone had been following him. He said his life was in danger.

A day later, he was dead.

Police told Zubaitha that her son had been killed in an accident. But she's not buying it and believes that Mohd Roszaidi would still be alive if his request for a transfer had been granted.

___________________________________________________

GRIEVING Zubaitha Othman, 41, believes her policeman son would still be alive if his request for a transfer out of Beaufort police station in Sabah to any station in Peninsular Malaysia had been granted.

She claimed that Mohd Roszaidi Mohd Rasol, 23, was murdered by someone who had been sending him threats since July last year.

Even on May 10, a day before his death, Zubaitha said her son called to say that someone had been following him and that his life was in danger.

That's why she couldn't believe it when told the next day (last Friday) that her son had died in a road accident at Km2, Jalan Beaufort-Sipitang, in Sabah.

Zubaitha, a former insurance agent from Kuala Garing Selatan in Rawang, Selangor, said this at her house after her son was buried yesterday.

Mohd Roszaidi was a constable at Beaufort police station and had been there since 2004.

"I believed he was murdered that his life was in danger a day before he died," she said.

"He said someone had been following him."

The next day, she received a call from a policeman who told her that her son had been killed in an accident.

Zubaitha said that her son had been traumatised since July 13 last year after a man had called him and threatened to kill him for allegedly having an affair with the caller's girl.

"Despite my son telling him that it was just a misunderstanding, the man continued to threaten my son. The man had said her son lodged a report at Beaufort police station on July 14.

Concerned by the threat, Mohd Roszaidi brought his wife, Rozita Awang Damit, who was pregnant then, to Zubaitha's house in Rawang on July 17. The couple stayed there for some time.

"While he was here, we went to Bukit Aman to apply for his transfer from Beaufort police station to any police station in the peninsula.

"We had sent four letters in all regarding the transfer request, but until his death, there's been no reply."

Zubaitha said Mohd Roszaidi had been told by a personnel from Bukit Aman to return to Beaufort at the end of his off-day period. Her son was also told that he could pursue his transfer request with the Beaufort police station.

"However, my son declined as he was afraid that he would be killed if he returned to Beaufort," she said.

She added that her son received a call from his friend in Beaufort that a man had showed up at the Beaufort police station looking for him.

Zubaitha, who described his son as friendly and loving, said his son went back to Beaufort on Dec 9 with his wife and their three-month-old daughter, Norashila.

"When he arrived at Beaufort, he was arrested for running away from duty but was released on police bail."

Zubaitha said her son kept calling her and asked about his transfer status as he felt that his life was in danger in Beaufort.

"Now I'm worried about the safety of my daughter-in-law and my granddaughter when they they go back to Beaufort," she said.

Mohd Roszaidi's body arrived in Rawang last Saturday and he was buried at Kuala Garing Muslim cemetery yesterday. He leaves behind wife Rozita and daughter Norashila, now nine months old.

Source: Malay Mail newspaper

Pictures: Malay Mail newspaper, The Sun newspaper

Four gangsters held in Sibu

KUCHING: Police have arrested four members of the notorious "Lo Han" gang following a shootout in Sibu.

Sarawak Police Commissioner Deputy Comm Datuk Talib Jamal said police opened fire when the men, who were in a car, tried to ram a police vehicle during a chase a10am yesterday.

He said police aimed their shots at the tyres of the car, but two of the gang members were injured.

"They are in stable condition in the state police contingent headquarters here yesterday.

With the arrests, police might have crippled two gangs high on the wanted list in Sibu.

The leader and several members of the "Hua Kee" gang are under remand in connection with a kidnapping case.

Recounting the incident yesterday, DCP Talib said a patrol car trailed the car the gang members were in following a tip-off that they had been involved in a burglary in Taman Salim.

"Police found several wearpons, including a samurai sword and a parang in the car, which was reported stolen in Kota Sentosa.

"Also recovered were a 32-inch plasma TV, three laptops and jewellery," he added.

DCP Talib said the gang members were believed to have been involved in armed robberies, extortion and burglaries in Sibu and Meradong.

He said police were still hunting for the "Lo Han" gang leader who was involved in a murder case in Julau in central Sarawak.

DCP Talib added that the gang's membership was diminishing but could not say how many of them were still left.

Source: Star newspaper

Holiday trip turns tragic for varsity mates, friends

REMBAU: The had completed their exams, so a group of university mates and a few friends decided a holiday trip to Pulau Tioman was what they needed to hill out.

The 10 set off in two vehicles yesterday, but things went horribly wrong about 2am.

Two of the five youths in the first vehicle were killed in a collision with an express bus on the North-South Expressway.

Passengers Hanani Abdul Razak, a 21-year-old UiTM student from Muar, and Mohd Iqbal Ismail, 22, from Taman Keramat in Kuala Lumpur, lost their lives.

The driver of the four-wheel-drive, 24-year-old Mohd Fakhrul Redza, attached to the Royal Malaysian Air Force base in Subang, and UiTM students Azira Md Azlan, 20, from Klang, and 19-year-old Ayu Helmiza, from Shah Alan, were injured.

They have been warded at the Tuanku Ja'afar Hospital (HTJS) in Seremban and are reported to be in stable condition.

Rembau police chief Deputy Superintendent Mizan Hohd Dom said the crash took place in Km230.8 of the expressway.

Fakhrul is believed to have lost control of the vehicle while trying to avoid a safety cone. It crashed into the mid-section divider and landed on the other side of the expressway.

"The driver of a north-bound express bus could not stop in time and slammed into the vehicle."

Mizan said Hanani, the eldest of three children, was pinned in the back seat of the car and died on the spot from head and body injuries. Iqbal was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.

Neither the driver nor the 27 passengers in the bus were hurt.

Mohd Khairy Abd Kadir, 26, one of the five in the other car, said the group of friends was driving to Mersing to catch a ferry to Tioman for a four-day holiday.

"We were looking forward to the trip. We never expected it to end like this."

Meanwhile, in Muar, it was the most shattering news a mother could receive on Mothers Day.

Azizah Isa had just spoken to the apple of her eye, Hanani, and was looking forward to seeing her as the interior design student had just finished her semester at UiTM.

Azizah, 47, described her daughter as a bubbly girl who "aimed to make lots of money and help her family".

"Hanani was always drawing in her spare time. During the school holidays, she used to work at a batik factory here.

"She told me that I need not to worry because after graduation, she could earn a lot of money from her designs," Azizah said at her Grisek home, 40km from here.

The last time both mother and daughter spoke was about 9pm on Saturday.

"She told me she wanted to go for a holiday first before coming home for the semester break. I told her to be home quick and that we missed her.

"She came home for just a day on Labour Day (May 1) and that was the last time we saw her."

After speaking to her daughter, Azizah, who is a supervisor with PLUS Berhad and based at the Pagoh Interchange office, left for her night shift at 9.30pm.

She was informed of the accident about 4am by Hanani's close friend.

Hanani's body was laid to rest at the Grisek Muslim cemetery.

Source: NST newspaper

Bus turns turtle, 2 killed

TWO Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka students were killed and 16 others injured when the bus they were travelling in turned turtle at the Ayer Keroh Highway opposite the Malacca Mall yesterday.

Wan Nornadia Wan Mansor @ Wan Ismail, 23, from Kampung Pengkalan Nyereh, Besut, Terengganu and Azimah Abdul Aziz, 22, from Jalan Abdul Rahman, Muar, Johor, died at the scene.

The bus travelling from Ayer Keroh to Malacca Sentral was said to have gone out of control after passing a traffic light near Pantai Hospital when the accident happened at 2.30pm.

The bus driver, Abu Hakim Goh, 54, was seriously injured and warded at Malacca Hospital.

Wan Nornadio was a final-year student in communication technology while Azimah was taking a degree in computer science (data-base management).

Wan Nornadia's friend, Suryani Mohamad, 23, who escaped unhurt said they were on their way to the city from their home in Taman Tasik Utara, Ayer Keroh. -Bernama

Source: Malay Mail newspaper
Pictures: Malay Mail newspaper, NST newspaper

Hospital lift fire causes evacuation

KUALA LUMPUR: Mohd Laub Hassan went to visit his grandfather at the Nerve Research Centre yesterday. But he was taken aback when he was not allowed to go up to the unit on the third floor of Kuala Lumpur Hospital.

"I go to the hospital about 1pm but security would not let me go up to see my grandfather.

"I managed to get up to the second floor and then took the stairs. When I looked through the door. I saw a commotion going on," said the 18-year-old.

That "commotion" was 50 patients and workers in the unit being evacuated after smoke filled the third floor of the building.

No injuries were reported, and the patients have been moved to other wards.

Federal Territory Fire and Rescue Department operations assistant director Md Ali Ismail said they received a call at 1.21pm and immediately sent a fire engine.

"The smoke had come form an unused lift on the ground floor of the hospital.

"Some paper and other rubbish in the lift shaft had caught fire sending smoke up to the third floor," he said, adding that there was no report of any damage.

A hospital spokesman said they will return to the ward once the smoke clears."

And Mohd Laud did manage to see his grandfather in the end, near the lift as he was being evacuated.

Source: NST newspaper

Pictures: Berita Minggu

Traffic cop dies in collision with car

KUALA LUMPUR: A policeman returning home after a traffic operation was killed in a collision with a car.

In the 6am incident yesterday, the car driver, believed to be intoxicated, collided with Kpl Ismail Mat, 49, who was on his motorcycle travelling in the opposite side of Jalan Loke Yew near the UE3 shopping complex here.

Kpl Ismail, from the city traffic police headquarters in Jalan Bandar, was dragged under the car for about 20m before the vehicle stopped.

Initial investigations revealed that the road dividers were removed at that particular stretch for road-widening works.

He was on his way home in Kajang after conducting a traffic operation in Jalan Pinang here.

Kpl Ismail, who had serious injuries on his head, chest and legs was rushed to Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, where he was pronounced dead two hours later.

Acting city police chief SAC (1) Zulhasnan Najib Baharuddin said the 29-year-old motorist from Cheras, who was heading to the Bukit Bintang area, was nabbed soon after the incident.

"Passing motorists stopped to help and alerted the police who later detained the driver," he said.

Kpl Ismail's body will be taken to his hometown in Kampung Kuala Muda in Kedah. He leaves behind two wives and four children.

Source: Sunday Star newspaper

Picture: Metro Ahad newspaper

Young couple found dead in car

KOTA KINABALU: A couple are believed to have died from carbon monoxide poisoning after their bodies were found along the Penampang Tambunan road, about 25km from here.

Sabinus Lionson, 27, and his girlfriend Lucia Marasin, 19 were found dead inside their Proton Iswara parked by the side of the road near Kampung Kibunut at about 7.30am yesterday.

Penampang OCPD Deputy Supt Mohd Azhar Harnin said the engine and air-conditioner were still running when the bodies were discovered.

"We do not suspect any foul play. We believe they could have suffocated from fume poisoning," he said.

The bodies have been sent to Queen Elizabeth Hospital here for post-mortem.

DSP Azhar said initial investigations revealed that the couple were drinking local rice wine at Kampung Moyog at about 3pm on Friday.

"A relative of the couple last saw them still drinking at about 7pm," he said.

DSP Azhar added that they left at about 10pm and had apparently stopped beside the road to rest.

"We believe they fell asleep and were suffocated by fumes emitted by the car," he said, adding that the time of death was estimated to be between 1am and 2am yesterday.

Source: Sunday Star newspaper

Crocodile attacks angler

BINTULU: Shouting at his nephew to save himself was the last thing that Sangka Mengong could do before he was dragged down by what is believed to be a crocodile at a river in Similajau, 70km from here, on Friday.

The 31-year-old plantation worker was fishing with his nephew, known only as Nicholas, 14, when the crocodile was said to have suddenly snapped at one of Sangka's legs before dragging him down into the river in the incident that took place about 6pm.

Until 7pm yesterday, a search operation mounted for him shortly after the incident by the Fire and Rescue and Sarawak Forestry departments had yet to bear any results.

Sangka is married and has a one-year-old son.

One of the victim's relatives said here that Sangka and Nicholas had hone to the river to catch prawns and that they were awake of the existence of crocodiles in the area.

However, the duo felt they would not come to harm as there had been no reported incidents of crocodile attacks there in recent years.

Source: NST newspaper

Duo charged with kidnap

IPOH: Two men were charged in a magistrate's court here with kidnapping glove factory manager Teh Wai Toong, whose body was found dumped in Sungai Siput last month.

Chew Wai Keong, 34, and Yan Wai Seng, 19, were jointly charged with wrongfully confining the 30-year-old victim the intention of seeking a RM200, 000 ransom.

The two part-time computer technicians from Kampar were said to have committed the offence at No. 2, Laluan Bercham Utara 17, Taman Utama, here at 10pm on April 20.

No plea was recorded.

During proceedings yesterday. Chew softly answered "understood" and Yan nodded when a court interpreter asked them in Cantonese if they understood the charge read out to them.

Chew and Yan, who were unrepresented, face life imprisonment or the death penalty if convicted under Section 3 of the Kinapping Act 1061.

DPP Budiman Lutfi Mohamed prosecuted.

Magistrate Radzilawatee Abdul Rahaman fixed June 13 for mention pending a chemist's report.

Source: Star newspaper