KUCHING: The main suspect behind the murder of PKR Miri branch secretary and Bekenu-PKR candidate Bill Kayong has been caught by the police.

Dato Stephen Lee was apprehended at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) at 7.45pm tonight after he was deported from China, said a press release from state Police Commissioner Datuk Mazlan Mansor.

“Lee was caught by the Ministry of Public Security, China in Putian, Fujian Province on Dec 12 and was subsequently handed over to the Malaysian authorities.

“He was escorted back by a special team led by state CID chief Datuk Dev Kumar,” the statement read.

Lee will be transported to Miri tomorrow, where he is accused of being the mastermind behind Bill’s murder.

Bill was shot and killed at the Kuala Baram bypass while waiting at a traffic intersection in broad daylight on June 21.

Since then, police have been hot on the heels of the murder suspects, charging two in August in relation to the murder.

Lee was previously believed to have been in hiding in Melbourne, Australia.

Information gathered by police at the time indicated he had flown to Singapore two days after the murder before departing to Australia on July 3.

The murder was believed to be in relation to a long-standing dispute between the plantation company headed by Lee and native land owners whom Bill had been representing.

Following the killing, police arrested and charged the alleged shooter, Mohamad Fitri Pauzi, 29, along with two other co-conspirators, Lie Chang Loon, 39, and Chin Wui Chung, 50.

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar has also taken to Twitter to congratulate the state police on apprehending the suspect.

“Congratulations PDRM Sarawak on the successful arrest of the mastermind behind the murder of Bill Kayong at KLIA earlier,” he wrote.

Syabas JSJ @PDRMsia S’wak bjaya kesan dan tkap perancang utama pembunuhan Bill Kayong di KLIA sebentar tadi. #GoPDRMGo — Khalid Abu Bakar (@KBAB51) December 13, 2016