POLICE in Kelantan have solved the murder of a young disabled man whose body was allegedly abandoned by the roadside in an attempt to disguise the killing as a traffic accident, amid growing concern over a sharp increase in homicide cases across the state.
Kelantan police chief Datuk Mohd Yusoff Mamat said investigators believed longstanding personal grudges and disputes among acquaintances led to the killing of 20-year-old learning-disabled victim Muhammad Zakir Fikry Mohd Zainal in Padang Lati last month.
The case was considered solved following the arrest of seven suspects aged between 25 and 52, including a married couple.
Police investigations found that all those detained were either friends or acquaintances of the victim and that disagreements had previously existed among them.
“Four of the suspects detained have prior criminal records, but urine tests found all of them negative for drugs.
“As a result of the arrests, we also seized various items including a car, three motorcycles, six mobile phones and two wooden sticks.
“The victim is believed to have been assaulted at a house in the district of Kota Bharu before being placed by the roadside in Padang Lati, Bachok.
“The victim was left at the roadside with severe injuries to make it appear as though he had been involved in an accident, rather than being beaten before he died the following day while receiving treatment at hospital,” he said during a press conference after attending the monthly assembly at the Kelantan Police Contingent Headquarters.
Mohd Yusoff said investigations identified two men aged 25 and 28 as the alleged masterminds behind the attack, while several others were believed to have assisted in transporting and abandoning the victim after the assault.
“The distance between the location where the victim was assaulted and where he was abandoned was approximately 6.5 kilometres.
“The suspects are currently under remand and the case is being investigated under Section 302 of the Penal Code. They will be charged in court in the near future,” he said.
Earlier reports stated that Muhammad Zakir Fikry suffered severe head injuries and died at 12.55am while receiving treatment at the emergency unit of Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia.
The murder case has intensified broader concerns within Kelantan police over rising violent crime trends in the state.
Mohd Yusoff revealed that five murder cases had been recorded during the first four months of this year compared with only one case during the same period last year.
At the same time, he acknowledged that homicide cases were often difficult to predict and prevent.
“It is difficult for us to determine the exact cause absolutely because not all murder cases stem from drug influence. For example, there are cases of fights ending in murder even though investigations found the suspects negative for drugs.
“This increase is deeply worrying. Based on observations, weak religious values and a lack of moral restraint are among the main factors causing individuals to be easily influenced by anger until they act violently and lose judgment,” he said.
He urged the public to remain vigilant regarding the movements and social circles of family members, particularly children and young people, in efforts to curb violent crime and prevent similar incidents from recurring. - May 18, 2026
