Brothers Charged With Murdering Man In Kangkar Pulai

JOHOR BAHRU, Feb 4 (Bernama) -- Two brothers were charged with murdering a man at a palm oil plantation house here in September last year.

R. Arasan, 32, and R. Utes, 36, nodded in acknowledgment after the charges were read out before Magistrate Nabilah Nizam.

They face a charge of jointly murdering 28-year-old V. Thamil Selvan at an unnumbered house on a palm oil plantation in Kangkar Pulai, Skudai, between 12.30 am and 4 am on Sept 15.

The charge under Section 302 of the Penal Code read with Section 34 carries the death penalty or up to 40 years’ imprisonment and up to 12 strokes of the cane if the death penalty is not imposed.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Siti Aishah Latif acted for the prosecution, while lawyers Mohd Hamizi Mohd Yusof and Mohamad Isa Mohamad Basir represented the accused.

The court set April 6 for a case mention, pending autopsy, toxicology, and DNA reports, and denied bail.

The accused arrived at around 9 am in a police vehicle, escorted by officers, including the case investigating officer.

Yesterday, Johor police chief Datuk Ab Rahaman Arsad said six human skeletons, including five from the same family, believed dead for over three months, were found in a house that burned down last month in a Kangkar Pulai, Skudai, palm oil plantation.

The six victims were a 35-year-old woman, a 19-year-old girl, two girls aged nine and five, a two-year-old boy, and a 28-year-old man.

Police arrested four local suspects, three men and a woman aged 19 to 35, in Iskandar Puteri on Jan 21. Two other suspects were released on police bail as prosecution witnesses.

-- BERNAMA