TAPAH, Nov 3 — A family of four is believed to have turned their mechanic shop-cum-house here into a slaughterhouse since 2012.

Police suspect they murdered four people, burning their bodies and dumping the remains in nearby Sungai Ceroh over debts and failed land deals.

They detained a 57-year old mechanic, his 54-year old wife and their two sons, aged 20 and 17, on October 26 at the shop almost hidden among bushes in Jalan Pahang on the fringe of town. The couple is believed to have two daughters whose whereabouts are unknown.

Perak deputy police chief Datuk Hasnan Hassan said the death toll could be higher.

“We do not discount the possibility that there could be at least one more case involving these suspects,” he told a press conference.

He said police began investigating the family after a 46-year old land broker went missing on August 25.

Their investigations revealed the broker had been murdered and that the mechanic and his first son were directly involved in the matter.

“We believe the victim was killed in the workshop rented by the mechanic and his body burnt in the compound,” Hasnan said.

“The ashes were then thrown into Sungai Ceroh while his motorcycle was left abandoned along the road to Cameron Highlands.”

He said investigations revealed the family was also involved in the disappearance of  three others who are believed to have been killed in the same brutal manner.

They included a 56-year-old female bus operator reported missing in March last year and a 54-year-old spare parts salesman who went missing in June that year.

The fourth victim is believed to be a 36-year-old man who worked at the workshop who was reported missing on October 30, 2012. He is believed to have been killed over a theft at the workshop.

The workshop had been operated by the family since 2012 with the 20-year-old helping his father. The 17-year-old suspect is believed to be unemployed.

On the discovery of the remains, Hasnan said forensic teams from the police and the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital combed several areas in Tapah on Friday and Saturday and found a number of bone samples which were sent to the hospital  for post-mortem.

He said DNA testing was ongoing.

The mechanic had seven previous criminal convictions including four for housebreaking and one each for theft, cheating, and criminal breach of trust.  

None of the other suspects had a criminal record.

Hasnan said the suspects had been remanded from October 27 to Friday.