SEBERANG PERAI, Feb 10 — A couple have been remanded for six days to assist police investigations into an abuse case involving an 11-year-old girl. 

The couple, a 36-year-old mechanic and 38-year-old housewife, were detained by the police yesterday after the child was found with both eyes swollen shut. 

Tamilar Kural Malaysia president David Marshel received a tip-off from the residents of a low-cost flat in Ampang Jajar that a child was suspected to have been abused by her stepmother on Sunday morning. 

David, Bagan Dalam assemblyman Satees Muniandy and their team visited the child’s home with the police at about 2pm and found the child with a heavily bruised face and her eyes swollen shut. 

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“Their neighbour called our service centre to inform us of a child abuse case, so we went to check together with the police and after speaking to the child, it was believed that she was beaten with a helmet,” David said. 

He said the child was then brought to the hospital for a full medical check-up and treatment.

According to Seberang Prai Tengah district police chief Assistant Commissioner Nik Ros Azhan Nik Abd Hamid, the child’s father and stepmother were detained to assist investigations into the case. 

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“Based on our investigations, the victim has been living with her father and stepmother since last year and had also stopped attending school since last year,” he said. 

He said it was alleged that the victim was frequently beaten by her stepmother with a helmet, clothes hangers and a stick. 

The medical check-up on the child confirmed that she had abrasions over her right frontal lobe, swelling on both eyes, bruises on her right elbow, multiple old scars on both arms, swelling on both feet and old scars on the rest of her body. 

“The victim is now warded at Seberang Jaya Hospital and a CT scan will be conducted on her today,” he said. 

He said a child specialist will also be conducting a full check-up on the victim.

It is understood that the couple have eight other children under their care between the ages of 19 and one. Only the victim and her eight-year-old brother are the stepchildren of one of the suspects. 

ACP Nik Ros confirmed that the father tested positive for drugs and that the other children did not display any signs of injury.