Hilir Perak district police have ruled out the possibility that PAS Perak Supporters Wing Youth chief P Panthiyan was slain for political reasons.

District police chief Goh Kok Liang told Malaysiakini that preliminary investigations suggest that Panthiyan may have been murdered out of revenge.

"I believe that there is no political connection to the victim's killing. It looks more like a revenge killing and does not look like a business jealousy hit either," he said.

Panthiyan, popularly known as Siva Pandian to PAS members, was gunned down on Monday at his car wash shop in Langkap, about 90km south from Ipoh.

The two assailants who were clad in full-faced helmets, shot Panthiyan twice on the forehead in full view of his wife, stepson and another worker.

Siva died on the spot while the assailants escaped on a motorbike, bearing the registration plate AGV 8474, towards Kampar.

Goh also revealed that Panthiyan has a previous criminal record under Section 394 of the Penal Code for voluntarily causing hurt in an attempted robbery.

Panthiyan is survived by his wife and five sons.

Five suspects detained

His step-son A Viji, 24, described the deceased as a well-liked person who did a lot of community work, including helping individuals obtain identification cards.

"My family is puzzled with the brutal murder. We believe he has no enemies or business rivals," said Viji.

Panthiyan's burial will be at Langkap today.

The police have detained five males, including one teenager, to assist investigations into Panthiyan's murder.

According to Bernama , they are between 16 and 22 years of age and were arrested between 4pm and 8pm on Monday night in the Langkap vicinity.

The case is being probed under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder.