SINGAPORE - Two Pakistani nationals, who wanted to recover money they had lost to a compatriot in a game of cards, allegedly smothered the victim at their lodging house in Little India, then sawed off his legs, the High Court heard on Tuesday (Nov 8), the first day of their murder trial.
After taking $6,000 from the victim, Rasheed Muhammad, 45, and Ramzan Rizwan, 27, allegedly packed the torso of 59-year-old Muhammad Noor into a grey suitcase and his legs into a black suitcase.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Ong Luan Tze said Ramzan pulled the black suitcase containing the legs to the Jalan Kubor Muslim Cemetery and left it against a wall.
Both men then tried to pull the grey suitcase containing the torso towards the cemetery, but while they were along Syed Alwi Road, one of the wheels broke, said the DPP in her opening address.
The duo abandoned the grey suitcase when blood dripped out after they tried to lift it up, the DPP told the court.
An 81-year-old man found the grey suitcase at about 6pm and tried to push it to a police station. Several passers-by came forward to help him, but when they learnt there was a body inside, one of them called the police.
Rasheed and Ramzan face the mandatory death penalty if convicted of murdering Mr Muhammad Noor on June 11, 2014 in his room at their lodging house on Rowell Road. Rasheed is represented by Mr Wong Siew Hong, while Ramzan is represented by Mr R.S. Bajwa.
The court heard that Rasheed and the victim were roommates at the lodging house while Ramzan stayed in another room.
Past midnight on June 11, Rasheed and Ramzan decided to attack the victim by smothering and strangling him. Ramzan pressed a shirt over the victim's face while Rasheed strangled the victim with a string.
The next morning, the duo headed to Mustafa Centre, where they bought an electric jig saw and a grey suitcase. They then went to Rowell Road to buy a bow saw and some trash bags.
The pair returned to the room, sawed off his legs at the upper thigh and packed the body parts into the trash bags. The torso was packed into the grey suitcase.
The duo went out again to Mustafa Centre where Ramzan bought a black suitcase. They then returned to the room to pack both legs into the black bag and cleaned the room up.
