Ex-pharmacist in Kuching, Sarawak, Wong Zing Haw murdered his wife before dismembering her and throwing her head into the river. He committed the murder seven years ago, and in 2020, the High Court in Sarawak handed down the death penalty to Wong, which he sought to appeal.
The Court of Appeal, however, upheld the death sentence yesterday (May 8).
A panel of three judges, led by Judge Datuk Mohd Zaini Abdullah, agreed that Wong’s conviction must set a stern reminder to the public that his crimes were detestable, especially after Wong tried to cover up the murder and showed no remorse.
In Datuk Mohd Zaini’s 40-page judgment, he dubbed the crime “Horrendous, particularly given that Wong had been with his wife since 2011.”
He said the bench, following amendments to penal laws in 2023, had the option to maintain capital punishment or impose a jail term of up to 40 years plus a minimum whipping of 12 strokes on male offenders who are less than 50 years of age.
Zaini also highlighted that since the demise of Wong’s wife, both of their children were deprived of their mother’s love. He also mentioned that Wong’s marriage turned abusive, and the man would chain his wife to a bed, which was witnessed by the children, as reported by Guang Ming Daily.
According to Utusan Borneo, Wong murdered his wife, who was a Chinese national, between February 25, 2018, at 9:30 PM and March 3, 2018, at 4:30 PM. Wong was arrested on March 4, 2018, after police found inconsistencies in his statement, in which Wong claimed his wife had run away from home earlier.
Wong purchased a saw, a knife, and a chopping board before he committed the crime
In another report by Suara Sarawak, another witness in the case shared that Wong had bought these accessories from his store before the murder.
Wong then disposed of his wife’s headless body into a crocodile-infested river before throwing her head in a different location, which was eventually found in the Batang Lupar River. To date, his wife’s body has never been found.
Police also seized the cutting tools, which still had the price tags on them.
Deputy public prosecutor Khusairy Ibrahim appeared for the prosecution while lawyers Orlando SW Chua and Vanessa Ting represented Wong.
