6 Chilling Crime Cases in Malaysia That Shook Us to the Core

From the unsolved murder of an eight-year-old to the vicious murder and rape of an IT analyst, we have listed some of the most memorable criminal cases that had once shocked the nation with their severity.

1. The murder case by pop singer-turned-bomoh, Mona Fandey, in 1993

Born Nur Maznah binti Ismail, Mona Fandey was a pop singer before she turned profession to a bomoh. She developed quite a reputation for herself, attracting many wealthy and influential clients. One of them included a state assemblyman named Mazlan Idris.

On the fateful night in early July 1993, Mona and her husband, Mohd Affandi, planned to exact revenge on Mazlan over a soured land transaction. Under the guise of a cleansing ritual, the couple invited Mazlan to their mansion before they brutally dismembered his body into 18 parts with the help of Mona's assistant, Juraimi Hassan.

It didn't take long before the police caught wind of what the trio had done. Later that same month, based on a confession by Juraimi, Mona, her husband and Juraimi were detained and charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code. The remains of Mazlan were later discovered buried in an uncompleted house on a property owned by him in Pahang.

In 2001, after being found guilty of the horrific crime, Mona was executed by hanging at Kajang Prison. For her last words, Mona uttered “Aku takkan mati” (I'll never die), which has eerily come true as she now still lives in the back of our minds more than 20 years after she died.

2. The rape & murder of Noor Suzaily Mukhtar in 2000

On 7th October 2000, Noor Suzaily Mukhtar was on her way to work at Pantai Medical Centre in Klang by bus. However, she never reached her workplace, and her dead body was found later the same day near a construction site on Jalan Bukit Tinggi.

According to the case file, the bus driver, Hanafi Mat Hassan, decided to go off the usual route after dropping off other passengers except for Suzaily. He later raped and sodomised 24-year-old Suzaily on the bus before strangling her to death with her own scarf.

The heinous act was witnessed by an 18-year-old boy who was cycling when he spotted a naked woman inside the bus, desperately crying for help. The boy named Devan was dismissed by Hanafi, who quickly drove away.

Devan, along with a motorcyclist, a middle-aged man and a driving school instructor, followed the bus as it fled to Taman Chi Liung. When he reached Jalan Bukit Tinggi, Hanafi discarded Suzaily's lifeless body before fleeing the scene.

Three days after the discovery of Suzaily's body, Hanafi was apprehended. On 18th December 2008, eight years after the gruesome murder, Hanafi was hanged in Kajang Prison for his crime.

3. The abduction & murder of Canny Ong in 2003

Did you know that the idea behind the women’s only parking that we often see in malls was actually inspired by a real-life gruesome murder in Malaysia?

On 13th June 2003, Canny Ong, a 28-year-old IT analyst from the United States, was abducted from a parking lot of a shopping centre in Bangsar after attending a dinner with her family and friends earlier that evening. CCTV footage shows Ong was kidnapped by a man who was later identified as Ahmad Najib Aris, 40.

Between 1 and 5 am on 14th June 2003, Ahmad Najib reportedly sexually assaulted Ong in her car, which he had left parked under an under-construction flyover near Taman Datuk Harun in Jalan Klang Lama. Ong was later killed with two knife stabs before her body was stuffed into a narrow drain hole along the highway. To ensure she was hidden, Ahmad Najib had covered Ong with two large tyres filled with cement.

As if that's not enough, Ahmad Najib returned to the crime scene the next day and set fire to Ong's body. The fire quickly caught the attention of a manager of the highway construction site who called the police. Five days later, Ahmad Najib was arrested following a mountain of evidence found which linked him to the murder.

After 13 years on death row and fighting to appeal his case, Ahmad Najib was executed by hanging in 2016.

4. The unsolved murder of Nurin Jazlin Jazimin in 2007

One of the most popular unsolved cases in Malaysia, the murderer of Nurin Jazlin Jazimin back in 2007 still remains at large to this day.

The eight-year-old was last seen alive when she left her home on the evening of 16th August 2007 to buy a hair clip at a night market in Wangsa Maju. However, the girl failed to return home, prompting her family to report her missing to the authorities.

Despite extensive searches, weeks passed by without any leads. That is until 16th September of the same year, when the police discovered the deceased body of a child stuffed inside a sports bag in front of a shop in PJ. The bag was found about 20 km away from where Nurin was last seen.

Upon further investigation, DNA results confirmed the body indeed belonged to Nurin, and she had been sexually assaulted and killed six hours prior to her body being found.

On 1st October the same year, four men and a woman were arrested in relation to Nurin's murder. However, due to lack of evidence, none of them were formally charged with the crime, and the case remains cold till this day.

5. The mystery of Norita Samsudin's murder in 2003

Yet another famous cold murder case in Malaysia, Noritta Samsudin was found dead at her home in Sri Hartamas by her housemates on 5th December 2003.

The 22-year-old company executive and part-time model was found naked with her limbs bound with wires and an undergarment. A pillowcase was also found covering her face, and her mouth had been stuffed with a towel. A post mortem revealed that Noritta was either raped or had engaged in sexual intercourse prior to her death and had died from suffocation. Several DNA samples were found at the scene and were concluded to belong to Noritta and two male suspects.

Following the investigation, a number of individuals were brought for questioning, including Norita’s ex-boyfriend, Hanif Basree Abdul Rahman, who was later named as the prime suspect. However, due to lack of conclusive evidence, Hanif was acquitted on 1st July 2004.

6. Jalan Turi Bungalow triple murder

Not many people have perhaps heard of the triple murder at a bungalow in Jalan Turi, Bangsar, as it happened in early 1992. However, the crime that took place here will still send shivers down anyone's spine.

On 23rd April that year, Suneeta Talwar was attacked by the family's security guard, Ariffin Agas, with stones soon after she returned home from a night out with friends. Fearing for her life, Suneeta fled the scene and sought shelter at a neighbour's house. Unbeknownst to her, her two children, aged 11 and 7, along with their maid, had been battered to death inside the home.

When the police arrived at the estate, they discovered the three bodies stacked on top of each other at the bottom of a 15-foot septic tank behind the house. Ariffin was promptly arrested, but when he was asked about his motive, Ariffin could not give a reason. However, it is believed that Ariffin struggled with a psychological disorder.