Story By: Simon Glover, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Asia Wire Report

Police have arrested a man for forcing his way into a neighbour’s house while they were sleeping and hacking a 12-month-old baby boy and a four-year-old girl to death with a machete.

The 49-year-old man first attacked a man, who needed 10 stitches near his ear, in the property in the village of Kampung Sungai in the Yan District of northern Malaysia’s Kedah State.

Picture Credits: AsiaWire

He then went into another bedroom where he found four-year-old Nurul Hanim Idris and her younger brother Muhammad Hafis asleep in bed with their mother.

The man allegedly first tried to attack the woman but she escaped and he went for her children with his long-bladed ‘parang’ (machete) instead.

The children’s grandmother, Jamilah Ismail, 60, said: “He tried to swing his parang at my daughter but she managed to avoid him.

“My daughter was so panicked she left the room to look for help. But the suspect was cruel and went ahead to attack and kill my two grandchildren.”

The knifeman, who lived near the home of his victims, was apprehended by local residents about two hours later. 

Police confirmed the suspect, whose name has not been released, was known to them and had a criminal record for drugs-linked offences although tests revealed he was not under the influence at the time. 

The man, who faces murder charges, reportedly told relatives: “I am drenched in blood. I have murdered them.”

The bodies of the children were sent to the Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in the state capital city of Alor Setar for post mortems.

Police are trying to determine whether there was any bad blood between the suspect and the victims’ family.

Chief Senior Assistant Commissioner Mior Faridalathrash Wahid said: “We will call the children’s father to have his statement taken later. Right now, the family is in deep grief.”