On 10 April 2024, the body of 39-year-old Singaporean Audrey Fang was discovered in Abanilla, Spain, after being brutally murdered.
After six days, the Civil Guard arrested a man in Alicante later identified as 43-year-old Singaporean Mitchell Ong.
As the investigation progressed, the mystery shrouding Ong’s identity and his relationship with the victim was revealed piece by piece.
Below is everything that is known so far about Mitchell Ong, the suspect in Ms Fang’s murder.
On his Instagram account @strongestasian, where he has about 14,200 followers, Ong describes himself as being a 1.88m tall “Power Asian”.
He also claims to be a “bro” of the International Fitness and Bodybuilding Federation (IFBB) but clarifies that he is not a professional.
Source: Mitchell Ong on Instagram
Nonetheless, his feed is filled with numerous photos of him working out at the gym.
Based on his Instagram posts, he is also a frequent traveller — having been to Greece, Poland, and various locations in Spain.
On his now-defunct website accessed through Wayback Machine, he adds that he is an “EDM connoisseur” and an “avid music festival attendee”.
On Instagram, he is seen attending music festivals such as Tomorrowland and Electric Daisy Festival (EDC).
According to his business, finance and lifestyle website, Mitch Direct, Ong “attended various prestigious schools in Singapore”.
In particular, he went to Nanyang Primary School, Anglo Chinese Secondary (Independent), and Raffles Junior College.
Source: Asia Research News
He then furthered his studies at the University of Singapore (now the National University of Singapore) where he majored in Economics.
His website additionally stated that he was an Economics lecturer.
Shortly after Ong was identified by the Spanish media, 8world News reported that he lived in a Bukit Timah condominium.
A reporter who visited his apartment discovered that Ong was married, with local marriage registry records showing he registered his marriage in June 2012.
Image courtesy of hotels.com for illustrative purposes only
Additionally, he has a daughter in primary school.
Ong’s elderly mother lives with the family in their Bukit Timah condo. He also has two older brothers, Ong’s former business partner told 8world News.
Meanwhile, their father has passed away.
Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) records obtained by 8world showed that Ong was registered as an owner or shareholder of six companies.
These businesses span a variety of industries, including:
Source: Unsplash
However, only one of these companies is still operating. This is an insurance and financial management company established in 1972, where Ong was registered as the sole director in 2009.
When reporters visited the company’s registered address, they found an education centre operating on the premises. The staff also claimed to be unfamiliar with the company’s name nor did they know Ong.
Ms Fang’s former colleague said that the victim had mentioned Ong a few years ago, reported Spanish news outlet La Verdad.
Levante, another Spanish news site, added it was obvious that the two knew each other as Ms Fang would not have gotten in the car with Ong with confidence had she not.
However, the exact nature of their relationship is unclear even to her loved ones as she was a very reserved person.
Source: Guardia Civil on X
A report by The Straits Times (ST) mentioned that Ms Fang had told her family she might be meeting a friend in Spain but didn’t share further details.
Additionally, a Civil Guard spokesman told ST that the two may have had a romantic relationship, noting a bouquet of flowers seen in Ong’s hotel room during their search.
Later, Ms Fang’s family were shocked to discover that Ong was listed as her agent in two insurance policies she had purchased in 2015.
This revelation came after Ms Fang’s brother and cousin looked through her belongings to find clues about her connection with Ong, reported ST.
ST reported that the letters showed Ms Fang had bought two investment-linked policies from AIA through Ong in August 2015.
Source: Unsplash
Ong’s name was listed as Ong Cheong Yi on the letters, which Channel NewsAsia (CNA) reported to be his Chinese name. He also went by several other names, including Mitch Ong and Mitchell Ong.
Ong had worked as a financial advisor at AIA from 2014 to 2019. On his now-defunct website, Ong described himself as a “financial services expert”.
On 16 May, the Cieza court confirmed Ong as the sole beneficiary of Ms Fang’s CPF savings, which reportedly amounted to S$498,000, according to La Verdad.
The judge had previously requested financial information about Ms Fang and Ong from Singapore authorities to determine Ong’s status as her CPF beneficiary.
Source: Fang Dirou on Facebook
The CPF is a mandatory social security savings scheme funded by employer and employee contributions. Upon a person’s death, the savings are transferred to their listed nominees.
Before the judge’s request, investigators found a note on Ms Fang’s iPad indicating her intention to nominate an unnamed person as her CPF beneficiary.
The note, allegedly dated 24 March — less than three weeks before she was found dead — read:
“I wish to clarify that my decision to nominate you for my CPF was made because you are my long-time friend and trusted confidant.”
Spanish police also confirmed that an attempt was made to make changes to Ms Fang’s CPF account in March before her trip to Spain.
It may be “months” before Ong is formally charged, sources close to the investigation said, according to CNA.
The public prosecutor’s office is still reviewing police evidence and investigations and the police report is still incomplete.
Meanwhile, the accused is in custody in a Murcia jail and has so far refused to give a statement, which has hindered investigations.
Source: AGENCIA EFE on YouTube
He was tagged as a flight risk as he is a tourist in Spain with no family or friends in either Alicante or in Abanilla, where Ms Fang’s body was found.
Ong remains in pre-trial detention, despite appearing before a judge three days after his arrest.
In Spain, a person can be held in pre-trial detention for up to two years, which can be extended by an additional two years for serious offences.
Also read: What happened to Audrey Fang: Timeline of a S’porean woman’s murder in Spain
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Featured image adapted from Mitchell Ong on Instagram and Nestia.
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