Police assure family of 7-year-old raped and killed in 1995 that case is not closed

SINGAPORE - The family of seven-year-old Lim Shiow Rong has been reassured that investigations are continuing more than 25 years after her rape and murder.

The girl's mother, Madam Ang Goon Lay, 65, and sister, Ms Lim Jia Hui, 27, were called to the Criminal Investigation Department on Monday morning (Jan 18), where an officer from the Special Investigation Section told them the case has been reviewed several times since 1995.

Speaking to the media after the meeting at Madam Ang's coffee shop in Block 75 Toa Payoh Lorong 5, Ms Lim said that the officer had photographs of the crime scene, but she told him not to show them to her mother as they could be distressing to her.

"The way my sister died was really horrible. You can imagine how bad it was for someone to beat up a seven-year-old so badly, what pain she must have experienced.

"If it was one of your children, I don't think you all could have taken it either because even if it was my own child, I probably couldn't have either," Ms Lim, who works in a customer service call centre, told the the media at the news conference organised by Crime Library Singapore.

She added that the officer had warned her that the photos might be disturbing and she had to prepare herself to view them.

"I was shocked and afterwards the impact was very profound. I think it will be hard to forget," she said.

Ms Lim said the photos showed how her sister's body was found with her legs stretched out in a drain. Her face was covered in blood and there were black marks around her neck.

The police said on Monday that extensive investigations were conducted between 1995 and 2000. These included photo identification, extensive interviews, public appeal for information, and following up on information provided by the public.

In August 2000, the coroner recorded the case as "culpable homicide by unknown person(s)", said the police.

Following the Coroner's Inquiry, the police said they continued to conduct regular reviews of the case.

"This included probing into any information provided by members of the public or the deceased's family, and leveraging advancements in forensic technology. For instance, the police followed up on information provided by the father of the deceased when he lodged a police report in June 2014," said the police.

They added that they are currently verifying information received by Shiow Rong's family earlier this month.

On June 24, 1995, at about 9.30pm, Shiow Rong told her mother she was off to see "papa's friend" and ran off while Madam Ang was busy at the coffee shop, which used to be owned by her husband.

That was the last time she saw her daughter alive.

Shiow Rong's body was found the morning after she went missing, in a semi-sitting position in the drain near Jalan Woodbridge on June 25, 1995.

Investigations revealed that she had been sexually assaulted and strangled.

At the time, Madam Ang's husband, Mr Lim Kim Siong, was just one week into his two-year jail sentence for drug-related offences. He died in 2016, aged 67, from a burst blood vessel in the stomach.

On Monday, the family also appealed to other families of unsolved murder cases to not stop seeking justice for their loved ones.

"I hope the families of the victims can step up and do something about it because the police is not giving up and so you all don't give up also," Ms Lim said.

Those who have information on the case can call 1800-255-0000 or submit information at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. All information will be kept strictly confidential.