GEORGE TOWN: Police are probing claims that a man, who died in a road crash here yesterday afternoon, had assaulted another man moments before his fatal accident.
K. Vimaleswara, 30, from Solok Kampung Jawa, died after his Suzuki Swift collided with three other vehicles which had stopped at the Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah/ Jalan Tengah traffic light junction yesterday afternoon.
However, police are now investigating claims that Vimaleswara may have assaulted another person prior to the crash.
Southwest district police chief Superintendent A.A. Anbalagan said a 51-year-old man, who owns a secondhand goods store in Sungai Tiram, has lodged a report claiming that Vimaleswara had assaulted his 21-year-old son.
"The man claimed that he was outside the store talking to a friend while his son, who is a person with disability, was napping in the shop.
"He claimed he saw a man without shoes running out from his shop. Suspecting something amiss, he ran into his store and found his son lying down with his face covered with blood."
Anbalagan said the man's son sustained injuries to the face as well as a broken nose.
The shop owner's son told investigators that he was about to go to sleep when a man ran towards him and told him, "Jangan kacau saya" (don't disturb me).
His assailant then proceeded to bash him with the victim's own motorcycle helmet.
Witnesses also claimed that the assailant ran out from the store and headed towards a red Suzuki Swift parked nearby. The claims were backed by closed circuit television (CCTV) camera footage.
Anbalagan said police have spoken to Vimaleswara's elder brother, who said Vimaleswara, who was unmarried, worked as a business development executive at a company in Sungai Tiram.
The company, he said, was located near the used goods store where the assault took place.
Anbalagan said based on statements, Vimaleswara had been suffering from depression since early March due to stress.
He said an investigation is being conducted under Section 326 of the Penal Code for causing hurt.