A Singaporean man was charged in Johor Bahru on Oct. 31, 2023, for the murder of a 25-year-old Malaysian man.

Fu Yiming (transliteration), 26, was denied bail and remanded pending trial, as reported by Malaysian media China Press, Guang Ming Daily and Sin Chew Daily.

Handed two charges

Fu was also charged with consuming methamphetamine, according to China Press.

Both of the alleged offences took place on Oct. 27 morning.

According to charge sheets seen by China Press, Fu allegedly killed Xie Zhiyu (transliteration) at Jalan Sutera 3, Taman Sentosa, Johor Bahru, between 3am and 3:30am, and allegedly tested positive for methamphetamine later at 6:05am.

The judge adjourned the case to Dec. 21, 2023.

Malaysian man stabbed to death

Fu, a 29-year-old Singaporean man named Pan Xuanyao (transliteration), and a 33-year-old Malaysian woman from Kuala Lumpur surnamed Yeoh (transliteration) were arrested following Xie's death.

Xie was allegedly stabbed to death while exiting a KTV nightclub in Taman Sentosa at around 3:41am.

He passed away not far from the scene and was reportedly found with stab wounds in his chest, stomach, ribs, shoulder, back, fingers and cheek.

Arrested after crashing into Johor Palace

The Malaysian police were alerted and were attempting to locate the murder suspects when they were alerted to the "suspicious" Singapore-registered Audi.

They intercepted the Audi to investigate, but Pan allegedly sped off.

The Audi skidded into the opposite lane and crashed into two oncoming cars before finally colliding with a portion of the Johor palace's fence at around 5:30am.

The trio were arrested for their suspected involvement in Xie's murder.

Subsequently, all three allegedly tested positive for methamphetamine.

Woman released

The trio were hauled to court on Oct. 28 morning.

Fu could be seen in videos yelling at the media outside the court, "Take photos of me! Take photos of me!"

He also asked the media, "Have you guys not covered murder cases before?"

Before he was ushered into a police vehicle, he told a man and a woman whom he appeared to know that Yeoh would be released later.

He also told them to tell the female suspect to "handle some items properly," including the crashed Audi and a Rolex watch.

Yeoh was released later that day on Oct. 28.

Pan released on bail

Pan appeared in Johor Bahru's court on Oct. 30 morning wearing a black shirt and black pants.

Pan was handed one charge for allegedly driving under the influence of drugs, causing the Audi to crash into the fence of the Johor palace at around 5:35am on Oct. 27.

He was also charged with consuming methamphetamine.

Pan pleaded not guilty to both charges after they were read and interpreted in court.

He was granted bail of RM7,000 (S$2,010) and RM5,000 (S$1,436) for each charge, respectively.

He was required to have two bail guarantors.

He is also required to report to the Malaysian police once a month and was required to have two bail guarantors.

His case is scheduled for Dec. 13, 2023.

Alleged circumstances leading to Xie's death

According to China Press and Shin Min Daily News, the incident allegedly started due to Yeoh.

Yeoh was in a relationship with Fu but the pair purportedly broke up around two weeks ago before Oct. 27.

She subsequently met Xie at a nightclub, and the pair began allegedly having intimate relations.

However, Yeoh supposedly got back together with Fu and allegedly demanded RM5,000 (S$1,430) from Xie, as well as for him to be slapped three times for supposedly molesting her.

Fu, on the other hand, allegedly threatened to go after Xie if he did not oblige and apparently said that he is a wanted criminal in Singapore who is not afraid of reoffending.

Xie reportedly asked for a day to prepare the money.

He was purportedly in the midst of preparing the money and was walking towards his car when he was allegedly fatally stabbed by Fu.

Family believes Xie was wrongfully killed

Xie's parents told Shin Min that they believed Xie was wrongfully killed as they did not recognise the three suspects, and they did not know whether he was dating anyone.

They also claimed he rarely went to nightclubs or stayed out late at night.

If convicted of murder in Malaysia, offenders may face the death penalty. If the death penalty is not imposed, the offender may face up to 40 years' jail and at least 12 strokes of the cane.

If convicted of driving under the influence of drugs, offenders may face between seven and 10 years' jail and a fine between RM30,000 and RM50,000.

If convicted of consuming drugs, offenders may face up to two years' jail and a RM5,000 fine.

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Top image from Sin Chew Daily and China Press