KOTA KINABALU: The Grab driver who was reported missing since last Friday was believed to have been robbed and murdered before his body was disposed of at a bush in Kampung Shahbandar, Tuaran.
Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Omar Mammmah said based on police investigation and cooperation from the e-hailing company, the police managed to locate the victim’s last two passengers who used the service.
“Acting on the information, police managed to locate and arrest two men at 1 Borneo parking lot here at 9.50pm yesterday.
“The two suspects confessed to have murdered the victim before disposing of the body at the bush in Kampung Shahbandar, Tuaran,” he said in a press conference at the Sabah Police Contingent headquarters in Kepayan today.
Investigations found that the victim had driven the two suspects at around 4am on Thursday from Kingfisher to Tuaran.
“Investigations also found the victim’s cash missing. The suspects, one is a foreigner, are 20 years old and jobless,” said Omar, adding that police would apply for a remand against the two suspects today to facilitate investigation.
“The victim was believed to have been dead for two to three days based on the swelling on his body and we believe that the incident happened on May 24.”
Meanwhile, Omar said the police were still trying to identify the body to make sure it belongs to the missing Grab driver.
“The family had been called but they couldn’t identify the body due to the decomposition. Therefore, we’re using fingerprints and DNA to identify the body.
“However, based on the suspects’ confessions, they said they did rob the Grab driver before killing him,” he said.
The disappearance of a Grab driver Mohd Hanafiee Jaafar, 27, has gone viral on social media since two days ago after his family failed to contact him.
At 12.30am on Sunday, a car believed to be Mohd Hanafiee’s was found at the Ramadan bazar area in Indah Permai, Sepanggar with blood stains on the steering wheel, handbrake, front door and windshield.
Last night, several statuses were posted on Facebook and Twitter, saying that a body had been found in Kampung Shahbandar, believed to be that of the missing driver.
The case is being investigated under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder.