By Jassmine Shadiqe

KULAI, MALAYSIA: Lai Ying Xin was strangled within 24 hours of her abduction, the post-mortem revealed.

The killer had used his bare hands to strangle the 16-year-old.

And after she was dead, the kidnappers contacted her family to demand a ransom "for her release".

State police chief Datuk Mokhtar Shariff said the cause of death was manual strangulation.

He, however, did not reveal whether police had identified the killer among the four suspects currently in custody.

The four, aged between 16 and 22, were nabbed in connection with the kidnapping and murder of Ying Xin.

The teenager, a student of Sekolah Menengah Sultan Ibrahim Kulai, also worked part-time in a hypermarket.

She was grabbed by the kidnappers last Thursday night while on her way home.

Mokhtar visited Ying Xin's family at their house in Taman Gunung Pulai here yesterday to extend his condolences and those of Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan.

He gave an assurance to the family that police would expedite investigations.

"We are waiting for the report from the Chemistry Department and the outcome of the DNA test. Once we have them, we can hand the investigation papers to the deputy public prosecutors."

Mokhtar said Ying Xin's remains, now at the Sultanah Aminah Hospital mortuary, could only be released to her family after the investigations were completed.

"We want to charge the suspects as soon as possible," he said, adding that he was shocked that two 16-year-old boys were among the suspects.

Mohktar said police had not ruled out the possibility that the kidnap-cum-murder case was a crime of passion.

The four suspects, who have been remanded until Sept 21, include a 22-year-old hairstylist who was said to have been infatuated with Ying Xin despite her rejecting his advances.

The four were arrested on Monday. They later led police to the body which had been dumped at a clearing in Taman Putri here, before being set ablaze.

Police also found part of the ransom money on the suspects. Although the suspects had demanded a ransom of RM60,000, the sum was reduced to RM35,000 after negotiations.

The drop-off was in a secluded area in Taman Putri. Police nabbed the suspects following a tip off.