Imagine a father’s shock when he was hours away from cremating his son… only to get a call saying the boy was still alive.
Source: New Straits Times
Turns out, Malaysian prison authorities, who informed 45-year-old Chantren that his son had passed away while in custody, had a mix-up.
Sungai Buloh Prison later video-called Chantren to show him that the 19-year-old was not dead.
A police report has since been lodged about the incident.
According to Sinar Harian, Chantren’s ordeal started last Friday (3 Mar) when he received a call from Sungai Buloh Prison.
Prison authorities told him his 19-year-old son had fallen unconscious in prison and died while in custody.
He was confused, not knowing that the teen was even in prison.
The 45-year-old and several family members then went to Sungai Buloh Hospital to collect his son’s remains as instructed.
While identifying the body, they noticed that he looked different.
However, they thought it was due to postmortem changes. His head was also shaved and there were suture marks on him.
After claiming the body, the family went back to their home in Taman Desa Permai to prepare for the funeral rites.
Just hours before the family was about to cremate the body, they received a phone call from prison authorities.
New Straits Times reports that they were informed that their son, whom they thought they were about to cremate, was alive and well.
The teen was still in Sungai Buloh Prison’s custody. Hearing the news, the entire family was understandably stunned.
They later learned that the body they were about to cremate was their son’s prison cellmate, who passed away from lung failure.
The prison then immediately arranged for them to have a video call with their son.
“This is all very confusing,” said Chantren.
He shared that the family had already forked out about RM20,000 (S$6,000) to rent a tent, cater food, and cover all the cremation costs.
Source: Sinar Harian
The prison department has since claimed the body from the crematorium and informed the proper next of kin.
Chantren now wants to know how such a mix-up could have happened.
His wife, 48-year-old Parameiswary, has since lodged a police report on the matter, reported New Straits Times.
Source: New Straits Times
She hopes authorities can come forward and provide a proper explanation as to what happened. After all, she said, it is “literally a matter of life or death”.
The family has also put in a request to see their son in person to confirm that he is truly alive.
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Featured image adapted from New Straits Times and Sinar Harian.
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