IPOH: Police have reclassified the case of a man who died in a fire at Taman Muhibbah 2 in Sitiawan early today as murder.
Manjung district police chief, Assistant Commissioner Hasbullah Abd Rahman, said they were informed of the fire incident at 2.30am today by members of the public.
"The fire department successfully brought the fire, which started in the living room of the house, under control. An inspection of the house uncovered the charred body of a man lying face down in the living room. The investigation revealed that a witness saw a known male suspect entering the house and heard thumping sounds coming from the living room," he said in a statement today.
He added that later, the suspect was seen leaving the house, returning with a container of liquid suspected to be petrol, and then leaving again before the witness noticed the fire.
"The post-mortem will be conducted today at Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital," he added.
Azizi said that, acting on a tip-off, police managed to arrest the suspect near the scene on the same day. The suspect has been remanded for a week, starting today, to assist in the investigation under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder.
"Members of the public who have any information related to this case can contact the investigating officer, Assistant Commissioner Azalan Ab. Karim, at 019-3927837 or the Manjung district police operations room at 05-6886222," he said.
It was reported earlier that a man died in a house fire at Taman Muhibbah 2, Sitiawan, while seven others escaped unscathed.
Perak Fire and Rescue Department assistant director of operations, Sabarodzi Nor Ahmad, said firemen from the Sitiawan and Seri Manjung stations were dispatched to the scene after receiving a distress call at 2.44am.
He said that the fire involved a single-storey terrace house, which was 60 per cent destroyed by the flames.