LAHAD DATU: An 11-year-old boy was killed by his stepfather's friend at the Felda Sahabat 30 Worker's Housing here.
In the 7.30 am incident, the boy was left with the suspect as his parents went to work at the nearby oil palm plantation.
District police chief Assistant Commissioner Dr Rohan Shah Ahmad said that upon receiving information about the incident, a police team went to the scene to conduct an investigation.
Police found the boy was covered in blood with apparent stab wounds on the back of the head and the front and back of the neck.
His left hand was also severed.
"The police are actively searching for the suspect, identified as a 33-year-old foreign man named Paulus Poka Lolo, who works as a general worker at the oil palm plantation," he said in a media statement today.
Rohan said the investigation found that the suspect was a friend of the boy's stepfather who fled after the incident.
"The motive for the incident is still unknown.
"The boy's body was later sent to the forensics department at Lahad Datu hospital for a post-mortem examination.
"The case is being investigated under Section 302 of the Penal Code, and if found guilty, the suspect could face the death penalty," he said.