Man charged with murdering gravedigger, attempted murder of son

KUCHING (Jan 12): A 50-year-old man has been charged in the Magistrates’ Court here with the murder of a gravedigger at a Chinese cemetery along Jalan Lumba Kuda in Kota Sentosa earlier this month.

The accused nodded to indicate he understood the charge, framed under Section 302 of the Penal Code, when it was read to him before Magistrate Nursyaheeqa Nazwa Radzali.

No plea was recorded as murder cases fall under the jurisdiction of the High Court.

The court denied bail and fixed Feb 19, 2026 for mention pending the post-mortem report.

The accused is alleged to have murdered Lo Thin Kuek, 68, at the cemetery at about 11.30am on Jan 3.

Section 302 of the Penal Code provides for the death penalty or imprisonment for a term of not less than 30 years and not more than 40 years, upon conviction.

If the death penalty is not imposed, the offender may also be sentenced to a minimum of 12 strokes of the cane.

Meanwhile, the accused claimed trial at the Sessions Court to a charge of attempting to murder the deceased’s 34-year-old son, at the same place, time and date.

The charge under Section 307 of the Penal Code carries a jail term of up to 20 years, upon conviction.

Judge Iris Awen Jon fixed Feb 12, 2026 for pre-trial case management and ordered the accused to be further remanded until the disposal of the case.

Deputy public prosecutors Mohamad Aiman Mutallib Mohamad Shariff and Chuah Kai Sheng appeared separately for the prosecution, while the accused was unrepresented by counsel.

In the incident, the gravedigger was found dead at the cemetery next to his seriously-injured son, who was rushed to Sarawak General Hospital.

The son is reportedly in stable condition.

Police subsequently arrested and remanded the accused and a 28-year-old woman to assist in the investigation.

The woman was released on bond on Jan 7 and will be called as a witness for the prosecution.