According to Sinar Harian, the girl’s father, a mechanic, had lodged a police report on April 26, regarding her death at their home in Batu 5, Binjai in Kemaman, Terengganu, and claimed she died after a bout of high fever.

Kemaman police chief Superintendent Mohd Said Ibrahim said the case was initially classified as sudden death, but later changed to murder after two rounds of post-mortems revealed bite marks on the deceased’s body that indicated abuse.

“We found the victim had been starved. Her body was also covered in human bite marks, and she also had several other wounds, including a swollen eye,” Mohd Said was quoted as saying.

The victim was staying at the house with her 49-year-old father, her 35-year-old step mother, as well as her two siblings aged 21 and 14. All four have been remanded for a week to assist police with their investigations.

The young girl had been staying with her father after her parents divorced.