GUA MUSANG: A property dispute could have been the trigger for the ruthless, calculated murder of an elderly couple, who perished after a homemade bomb planted on their motorcycle exploded today.
Cha Mok Liong and his wife Fong Ah Fong, both 72, died when the device exploded while they were travelling along Km 3 of Jalan Gua Musang-Kampung Pulai this morning.
Kelantan police chief Datuk Mazlan Lazim said the couple, both rubber tappers, had left their home in Kampung Batu Papan and were headed to Pulai for business matters.
“The motorcycle they were on blew up after they had travelled for about three kilometres,” he told reporters today.
The explosion smashed the motorcycle to smithereens and killed the couple instantly.
Mazlan said the couple’s remains were strewn over a 40-metre radius on the road.
He said police’s checks suggested that the explosive device was planted near the motorcycle’s battery.
Police, he said, have detained a 27-year-old relative of the couple in connection with the incident.
“Initial investigation showed that the suspect had a dispute with the victims over a property claims,” he said.
Mazlan said police have classified the case as murder.
The explosion rocked residents of the usually idyllic area and caused a commotion. The road was later blocked off by police to enable the Kelantan police forensic team to comb the area for clues.
It was learnt that the explosion was so great that policemen found pieces of flesh as far as 100 metres away from the scene.