30 May 2013
KUALA LUMPUR: SEVEN men were arrested by police in Ampang yesterday to facilitate investigations into the murder of American pastor David James Ginter.
Acting Selangor police chief Datuk A. Thaiveegan said the suspects, aged between 20 and 30, were members of the victim's congregation.
Ginter was found dead at his house in Taman Sri Ukay on May 4.
Thaiveegan declined to elaborate on the arrests, saying police needed time to question the suspects and that it was too early to jump to any conclusions regarding the motive of Ginter's death.
"Give us time to investigate the case, as we cannot disclose information on our findings. It is too early to say how many were involved in the victim's death."
Ginter's body was found by his neighbour, Fiona Emilia Parere, in the living room of his double-storey house. His hands and feet had been bound and the cable of a phone charger was wrapped around his neck.
Parere had been asked by Ginter's wife, Sheryl, to check in on him after repeated attempts to contact him had failed. At the time of the incident, Sheryl was in Australia.
A post-mortem revealed that he had bruises and scratches on his face, neck, body and legs and several broken ribs. His cause of death was determined to be asphyxiation.
His Toyota Avanza, registration plate WRS 4390, was reported missing when his body was found.
His wife has returned to Malaysia to help police in their investigations.
The couple have two adopted children, who have returned to Malaysia. Ginter had been attached to the Bridge International Church in Jalan Ampang for three years.
He was seen as an inspirational figure to many in his congregation, not only in Malaysia but also abroad, where he had served as a pastor prior to moving here.
Police investigations revealed no signs of struggle or forced entry into the house. Ginter's dog had been locked in one of the rooms on the ground floor and it was not certain whether anything had been stolen.
No comments:
Post a Comment