Two fires in Selangor kill nine people, murder suspected in one case
Nine people, including two children, were killed in two separate pre-dawn fires yesterday in Malaysia's Selangor state.
In the first incident, the remains of an elderly couple - aged 73 and 68 - were found along with the bodies of their grandsons, aged nine and three.
The discovery came after firemen put out the fire that razed the wooden house in Tanjung Sepat, Banting, following an emergency call at 6.10am.
Selangor Fire and Rescue Department assistant director of operations Mohd Sani Harul said: "The charred remains have been sent to the Banting district hospital where post-mortems will be conducted," he said.
Selangor crime investigation department chief Fadzil Ahmat said police found stab and slash wounds on three of the bodies.
"It prompted us to reclassify the case as murder. We believe that they could have been killed before the house was set ablaze.
"However, we will only be able to determine the real cause of death once the post-mortem results are out," he said.
Kuala Langat district police chief Azizan Tukiman told The Straits Times that initial investigations found that a flammable object had been thrown into the house to start the fire.
"The family car, which was parked in front of the house, was used as a trigger," he said.
In the second case, four elderly residents and a 25-year-old caretaker died after a nursing home fire in Sungai Long, Kajang. Four occupants escaped, said Mr Sani.
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