BATU PAHAT: The police confirmed that bone fragments found in an abandoned house in Tongkang Pechah here, on Feb 28, belonged to the murder victim, Bella, whose real name is Mila Sharmilah Samsusah.
Batu Pahat district acting police chief Supt Shahrulanuar Mushaddat Abdullah Sani said that the matter was confirmed by the state Chemistry Department through a deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) test.
“The test found that it matched the skeleton remains found during the initial investigation of Bella’s murder case.
“The Sultan Ismail Hospital (HSI) in Johor Bahru has been informed of the test result, to enable Bella’s family to claim the bone fragments,” he said in a statement today.
Meanwhile, Bella’s sister, Norhisham, when contacted, said that the bone fragments had been claimed and safely buried in Bella’s grave at the Banang Jaya Muslim Cemetery here at 1 pm today.
“I was informed by the investigating officer to claim the bone fragments yesterday (Friday). Alhamdulillah, Bella’s bone fragments were finally safely buried,” she said.
On Jan 24, Bella’s boyfriend, Mohammad Haikal Mahfuz, 25, was charged in the Magistrate’s Court with murdering Bella, between 11 am on Dec 14 and 5.30 am on Dec 15, between Jalan Kelapa Bali, Taman Soga and Jalan Parit Besar, Kampung Parit Besar, and an abandoned house in Lorong Imam Jailani, Tongkang Pechah in Batu Pahat.
The accused is charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code, which provides for the death penalty or imprisonment for a term not less than 30 years or not exceeding 40 years, if not sentenced to death, and whipping not less than 12 strokes of the cane.
On Jan 19, police found incomplete skeleton remains in an abandoned house in Lorong Imam Jailani (Batu Pahat) after being led there by one of the main suspects in the case of the disappearance of the single mother of two.
Bella, 32, a single mother of two, was reported missing on Dec 14 after she left in her boyfriend’s car at 11.50 pm to go to a laundromat but failed to return home.