Murdered Estonian model’s boyfriend arrested, couple were charged with drug possession, say reports
The boyfriend of Estonian model Regina Soosalu, whose death in Pulau Rawa has attracted national interest, has been detained by police to assist investigations.
The Star reported that 28-year-old Tunku Alang Reza Tunku Ibrahim, who has links to a member of a royal family, was picked up by police yesterday and remanded for seven days.
Johor CID chief Datuk Hasnan Hassan confirmed Tunku Alang Reza's arrest, which brings to seven the total number of people detained in connection with Soosalu's murder.
The Star also reported that Soosalu and Tunku Alang Reza had been involved in a drug case earlier this year and were charged in the Magistrate Court on May 12 with possession of 5.84g of cannabis.
The couple pleaded not guilty and were released after paying a total of RM7,000 in bail money.
Their lawyer Bustaman Menon Abdul Hamid Menon told The Star the case was still ongoing and was last mentioned on May 25.
All of the suspects who have been arrested so far in connection with the model's murder were believed to have been on Pulau Rawa when Soosalu's body was discovered on the beach on July 1.
The Star quoted sources as saying those arrested were a bartender, two boatmen, a resort manager and an acquaintance of Tunku Alang Reza.
The 28-year-old Tunku Alang Reza has been remanded for a week along with a friend known only as Augustine, 30, with the custody order obtained from the Kota Tinggi magistrate’s court yesterday morning.
Hasnan Hassan said the autopsy is still being carried out and samples have been taken for tests.
Soosalu was initially thought to have drowned but suspicious wounds on her body led to police reclassifying her death as murder.
An Estonian news website has linked a two-minute video clip made by Vision Studio entitled “Remembering Regina” in which the model speaks about her life and hopes in Malaysia.
The clip, which was published on July 8, carried the words “We remember not just that you are gone but your existence had given us memories too beautiful to forget”.
In the video, Soosalu talked about how warm Malaysia is since she was from a cold country and said she was unsure if she would continue living in Malaysia permanently.
According to the website, her family last spoke to her on June 27 and claimed that they were only told about her death on July 8.
Meanwhile, in another article, The Star reported that Tunku Alang Reza is an ardent surfer who enjoys water sports.
Sources close to him said he usually spends his time at Pulau Rawa and Mersing as his late father, Tunku Alang Ibrahim Tunku Muhammad Archibald, owned the Alang Resort on the island.
The Star reported that these places have been his playground since he was a boy.
Tunku Alang Reza is a grandson of Almarhum Tunku Muhammad Archibald Almarhum Tunku Temenggong Ahmad, the first cousin of former Johor ruler Sultan Iskandar Ibni Almarhum Sultan Ismail.
After Soosalu was found dead on the beach, Tunku Alang Reza was silent as sources said he was too distraught to talk about it.
However, on Tuesday, he wrote about his grief on Facebook, describing Soosalu’s death as “the worst tragedy of my life”.
He bemoaned the loss of Soosalu, saying: “Regina, my love has passed away on July 1, in the holy month of Ramadan. She is my love, my best friend and will continue to be my inspiration for the rest of my life.”
Tunku Alang Reza is the second of five siblings, including four boys.
He has a younger sister and all of them are in their 20s. – July 11, 2014.
