KUANTAN: A construction worker based at Singapore was stabbed to death outside a three-storey entertainment centre at Lorong Haji Ahmad 6 at 3.45am on Thursday.
Victim Tan Yee Chuan, a 31-year-old from Taman Tas, was chatting with his friend, a salesman in his 20s, when they were approached by two dark-clothed men, who were also wearing black ski masks and armed with a parang and knife.
Speaking in Cantonese, one of the masked men then stabbed the victim with a knife before the duo fled the scene in a car.
The victim’s friend quickly rushed Tan to the Tengku Ampuan Afzan Hospital (HTAA) here as he was bleeding profusely.
However, due to grievous stomach injuries, a doctor pronounced the victim dead on arrival.
The case has been confirmed by Pahang Criminal Investigation Department chief Othman Nanyan, who said that the police have received a report on the incident, which was lodged by the deceased’s friend.
He said that a post-mortem was conducted on the deceased this morning.
“At the moment, no arrests have been made and that investigation is still ongoing,” he said, adding that the police have yet to ascertain the licence plate of the getaway vehicle.
He said that the matter is being probed under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder, and urged anyone with information on the case to contact district Criminal Investigation Department chief Deputy Superintendent Zaizul Zakaria at 013 9823630.
Meanwhile, the deceased's relative, who only wished to be known as Wong, said that Tan, who install ceilings in Singapore, had come home to spend his holidays with his family.
“By right he should have arrived home on Monday, but he postponed it to Wednesday as he wished to celebrate his father’s birthday.
“However, yesterday he was also unable to come home, and now this happened,” he said.
Wong admitted that the deceased in the past had been involved in various criminal acts including drug-related ones, but stressed that the father of two girls, aged eight and 10, had turned over a new leaf.
"He was no longer involved in crime after he got a job in Singapore as he was focused on earning a living to care for his family in Malaysia," said Wong, who revealed that Tan had divorced from his wife.
Meanwhile, a shop owner near the scene of the crime had said that the police had just come by to look at his shop’s exterior closed circuit television (CCTV) as part of their investigation into the murder.
The shop owner, who declined to give his name, said that the CCTV camera points toward the general direction of the area where the victim was stabbed.