Motive behind Zayn Rayyan’s murder still unknown, says IGP

KUALA LUMPUR: After more than a month since Zayn Rayyan Abdul Matiin was murdered, the police are now looking at all information gathered during the course of the investigation.

Police have completed more than 90% of the investigation from the aspects of forensics, pathology, witness statements and combing the area where the body was found.

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain said the latest move was needed after forensic investigation could be categorised as achieving a negative result.

“Our focus through the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is to scrutinise and re-evaluate information and intelligence that have been gathered, on top of gathering new information. We will re-evaluate and re-study it before proceeding further.

“We will also look at the possibility of more arrests based on statements and evidence gathered,” he told a press conference at Bukit Aman on Tuesday (Jan 9).

Razarudin said the police faced a challenge as they were unable to ascertain the motive behind the murder.

“For example, for cases such as gang fights, we can ascertain the motive was gang rivalry.

“The motive remains an integral part of the investigation. However, in Zayn Rayyan’s case, we have not uncovered the motive or why he was murdered,” he said.

He said Bukit Aman and Selangor police were still gathering intelligence and new leads to identify the motive, on top of tracking down the perpetrator.

“I am not ruling out the possibility that we will call up the parents, family members and other witnesses again. We welcome new information from credible witnesses,” he said.

Zayn Rayyan, a six-year-old autistic boy, was found dead about 34 hours after he was reported missing.

His body was later discovered at about 10pm on Dec 6 in a river near his home at Idaman Apartment, Damansara Damai in Petaling Jaya.

So far, police have recorded the statements of 225 individuals and collected 248 DNA samples from residents and other individuals in the course of the investigation.