Pekan district police chief Zaidi Mat Zin said the remains were discovered in a Nissan Grand Livina by an elderly man carrying out some work near the riverbank this morning.

“The car was damaged on its front, left and right; an inspection inside found a body covered in mud and a worker’s pass registered under the name of Iman Aqmar,” he said.

Checks on the vehicle’s registration brought a link to a missing person’s report made in Pasir Gudang, Johor, by family members of a man named Iman Aqmar Dzulkarnain.

Zaidi said the remains were sent to hospital for a post-mortem, while the car was towed to Pekan police headquarters for investigations.

The missing person’s report was filed on Oct 30 by Asmawati Kadir, 55. She said her son Iman, 24, could not be contacted after leaving home at about 1am to report for work in Kemaman, Terengganu.