[MalaysiaNews] New student found dead in hostel, ragging suspected

Link to report

29 Jan 2007
Sulok Tawie

KUCHING: A Form Four student who had just enrolled in a new school was found dead, believed to be a victim of ragging.

Matheus Mering August, 16, walked into SM Teknik Bintulu for the first time on Monday, and on Saturday night, he was found unconscious in his hostel room.

His body was bruised and swollen.

He was rushed to the Bintulu Hospital by a teacher and several students but was pronounced dead on arrival.

Police have classified the case as murder.

Bintulu police chief Superintendent Sulaiman Abdul Razak said they had held 18 students, between the ages of 16 and 17, for questioning.

Investigations reveal Matheus was bullied and ragged by his seniors during orientation. From his injuries, police are trying to find out if he was also assaulted.

"We will get to the bottom of this," Sulaiman said.

Police are waiting for the post-mortem results to determine the cause of death.

Sulaiman said the seniors had allegedly ragged the juniors without authorisation from the school.

"Ragging is never a practice in the school," he said, adding that Matheus was transferred from another school after completing his Form Three.

Bintulu Member of Parliament Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing urged the Education Department, schools, parents and parent-teacher associations in the division to make sure such incidents did not happen again.