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JOHOR BARU: Five men, including a father and son, were charged at the magistrate's court yesterday with kidnapping and murdering a Singaporean illegal moneylender (Ah Long) whose remains were found at Sungai Kongkong, Masai, in November last year.

Ngu Lai Hoo, 38; Khairul Halmie Mohd Azmi, 23; P. Vickneswaran, 25; Abdul Latif Ahmad, 53, and his son Ninja Abdul Latif, 22, were charged with kidnapping Sim Chee Yong, 56, at Jalan Tun Abdul Razak here at 11pm on Nov 26 last year.

Together with several others still at large, they were alleged to have kidnapped Sim for a ransom of RM800,000 (S$330,000).

They were also charged with murdering Sim at a bank of Sungai Kongkong in Masai between 3am on Nov 30 and 11.30am on Dec 1, last year.

Deputy public prosecutor Khazrin Haffiz Khalil prosecuted. R. Subash appeared for Vickneswaran while the others were unrepresented.

Magistrate Isa Mohamad fixed March 1 for mention, pending the chemistry and forensic reports.