KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 — One of the suspects detained in the murder of Maniishapriet Kaur Akhara, a 20-year-old physiotherapy student, was her housemate, according to police in Selangor.
The housemate is believed to have given her boyfriend — now the main suspect — access to the student hostel unit in Cyberjaya before the killing took place.
At a press conference on Tuesday, Selangor police chief Comm Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said that preliminary findings indicated the suspect had stayed at the accommodation before and was allowed to return on the night of the murder while his girlfriend, the housemate, was away in her hometown.
“The main suspect had apparently stayed overnight previously,” he was quoted as saying by The Star.
“On the night of the incident, the suspect was given the access card and keys as he wanted to stay there again, while the girlfriend had gone back to her hometown.
“However, he had ill intentions towards the victim that led him to hit her using an object and eventually murder her.”
Hussein said a pathology report showed no evidence of rape, although investigators had not ruled out the possibility of sexual assault.
“We are still investigating further to find any proof of sexual assault,” he said.
“We are also investigating the motive behind the murder.”
The suspect allegedly stole several items belonging to the victim after the killing, including her laptop, mobile phone and ATM card.
“We discovered that he had withdrawn RM200 using her ATM card,” Comm Hussein added.
Police said four individuals — one man and three women aged 19 and 20 — were arrested within 48 hours of the incident in separate operations in Johor Baru and Gemencheh, Negri Sembilan.
The case is expected to be handed over to the deputy public prosecutor soon.
Maniishapriet, who was originally from Kuching, Sarawak, was found unconscious with visible injuries at her student hostel unit on the morning of June 24. A friend discovered her body at around 10am and alerted authorities.
She had been staying alone in the unit since June 21, as her five housemates had left for the holidays. She was preparing for an upcoming exam, according to police.
A post-mortem confirmed that the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head.
