KLANG: Four friends were charged at the Klang magistrate’s court here with the murder of a transvestite in front of a hotel here on Dec 12.

The men, Low Shi Haur, 21, Tan Khim Siang, 19, and two youths aged 16 and 17 nodded as indication they understood the joint charge as it was read by the court interpreter.

However, no pleas were recorded in the presence of magistrate Solehah Noratikah Ismail.

All the accused, together with another person who is still at large, were charged with causing the death of the victim, 32, in front of a hotel in Bandar Bukit Tinggi, Klang, at about 7am on Dec 12.

The accused were charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code which provides for the death penalty, if found guilty.

The prosecution was conducted by deputy public prosecutor Firdaus Idris while all the accused were represented by counsels Akmal Jusoh, M. Varalehchumy and G. Santiago.

The magistrate fixed Jan 30 for a re-mention of the case without bail as it involved murder.

The media had previously reported that a transvestite from Sabah was seriously injured after being beaten with a blunt object outside the hotel.

The victim was found with injury wounds by a security guard and later confirmed dead while receiving treatment at the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital (HTAR) in Klang.

Following the case, police detained four suspects, aged 16 to 21, to help in the investigations. — Bernama