A CASUAL outing with several men including two brothers led to the disappearance of 18-year-old school leaver See Sheau Fang of Sijangkang in Kuala Langat more than 15 years ago.
See, who had just completed her SPM examinations, went missing on Feb 24, 2004 and her decomposed body was recovered from a 1.6m deep pit about two weeks later.
When she did not return home a day after the outing, her family mounted a search before being led to her killer Kher Thien Hock, then aged 29. Witnesses had spotted See with him and his younger brother Kher Thien Heng, then aged 26.
The men denied knowledge of the teenager’s whereabouts on being questioned by See’s family, prompting them to lodge a police report.
The next day, the victim’s father See Soo Thiam received a ransom demand of RM40,000 from an unknown caller for her release. The father dropped off the ransom at a location in Klang but the girl did not return.
Days later police picked up the Kher brothers who led them to a house in Taman Wira where they had dug a pit in the compound with a backhoe. They had buried See’s body and resurfaced the ground with concrete.
On March 8, forensics police spent hours breaking the concrete floor to exhume See’s remains. Her body which was packed in large rubbish bags was found with her hands tied behind her back.
She was also believed to have been drugged and gang-raped before being strangled.
While being held in custody at the Tanjung Sepat police lock-up, Thien Hock escaped when he was allowed to use a toilet.
While Thien Heng was charged in court about a month later, his fugitive brother remained at large, making him one of the most wanted criminals in the country. However, Thien Heng was acquitted in 2008 after the court found a lack of evidence against him.
Thien Hock was believed to have fled the country and it was not until 2011 when he was arrested and charged with murder.
Closure came 11 years later for See’s family when Thien Hock was sentenced to death in May 2015. The killer’s appeal against the conviction and sentence was also dismissed by the Appeals Court nine months later.
