ALOR SETAR: An 18-year-old youth, whose body was found dumped by the roadside in Gurun, was allegedly held captive and tortured for two days, says Kedah police chief Adzli Abu Shah.
Adzli said the victim was abducted in Pendang on Oct 5 by a group of suspects who accused him of stealing a motorcycle.
“The victim was taken to the house of one of the suspects, where he was detained for two days, tortured and beaten, and had his hair cut,” he told reporters at the Kedah police headquarters here today.
The victim was found dead in the house on the night of Oct 7. Those who tortured him then decided to dump his body by the roadside along Jalan Harvard in Gurun.
Police received information about the discovery of the body at 8.05am on Oct 8.
A post-mortem found that the victim died from blunt force trauma to the head.
Adzli said police arrested 14 people, aged between 16 and 24, in operations around Gurun and Guar Chempedak on Oct 8, a few hours after the body was discovered.
Police seized 14 mobile phones, a car, a pair of scissors, and the victim’s identity card.
Twelve suspects have been remanded for six days until Wednesday, while two minors have been remanded until tomorrow.
The case is being investigated for murder under Section 302 of the Penal Code.
The victim was found wearing yellow and black sportswear and had injuries to his head and face. He was initially found without identification documents.
In a separate case, Adzli said police were tracking down two men to assist in investigations into an attempted murder and the obstruction of police officers during an operation against migrant smuggling at the Hutan Kampung toll plaza on Oct 7.
He said police had intercepted a Proton X70 SUV suspected of carrying five migrants, but the driver allegedly tried to run over a police officer before crashing into the toll barrier.
“Police fired one shot at the tyre. The motorist fled and abandoned the vehicle in Pendang, about 28.3km from the scene,” he said.
Adzli said several people had been detained. Police are looking for two more men to assist in the investigation.