A SEPTUAGENARIAN is in police custody after confessing to the gruesome murder and dismemberment of a woman in her forties whose remains were discovered scattered across multiple locations in Sepanggar.
The suspect, aged seventy-one, was apprehended at the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital emergency department on Tuesday evening following a chilling discovery of human limbs at a refuse site in Taman Indah Permai.
Superintendent Syed Lot Syed Ab Rahman, the Acting Kota Kinabalu District Police Chief, confirmed that the elderly man admitted his involvement during preliminary questioning, citing a volatile personal conflict as the primary motive.
The dispute reportedly centred on demands for the return of engagement money after the victim allegedly ended their arrangement to marry someone else.
The suspect claimed the murder was linked to a personal relationship conflict between him and the victim, including issues regarding the demand for engagement money after their engagement was believed to have been broken because the victim had married another individual, Superintendent Syed Lot stated.
This situation is believed to have triggered an argument between the suspect and the victim, leading to the incident.
The investigation gained significant momentum after witnesses reported seeing a woman frantically attempting to flee a residence before being forcibly dragged back inside by a man.
This lead directed officers to the primary suspect and a second individual, a nineteen-year-old local man, who was detained later that night at the Taman Seri Maju Apartments.
Police have seized several items of interest, including mobile phones, clothing believed to have been worn during the commission of the crime, and a gold-coloured Nissan X-Trail for forensic analysis.
The arrests follow a harrowing search operation that began at half-past six in the morning when a pair of arms and legs were found. Subsequent searches led to the recovery of the victim’s head and torso at approximately twenty minutes to noon in a nearby area.
Both suspects are currently being held under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder. Superintendent Syed Lot noted that further investigations are ongoing to complete the case file.
Following this, at 8.10 pm last night, police arrested the main suspect at the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital Emergency Unit to assist in further investigations, he said.
Police then arrested another local man aged 19 at 10.30 pm at a residential unit in Taman Seri Maju Apartment, Sepanggar, as he is believed to be linked to the incident.
Both suspects are now detained to assist in the investigation under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder. - February 13, 2026
