The Indonesian police have arrested a 52-year-old man believed to be involved in the murder of a Malaysian medical student in Malang, East Java three months ago.

Malaysian Embassy education attache in Jakarta Ludinata Misnun said the embassy was notified by Malang police chief Teddy Minahasa Putra that the suspect, who hailed from Malang, was hauled up yesterday and several items of evidence were found on him.

Ludinata said the police were hot on the trail of a 43-year-old man who was allegedly an accomplice in the murder.

Adrian Jay Prereira, 22, a medical student at Universiti Brawijaya, Malang, was killed in an attempt to prevent a man from stealing his motorcycle outside his living quarters on Nov 7 last year.

“The motive of the murder was retaliation as the suspect felt threatened when the victim fought back,” he said, adding that the incident was crime-related and had nothing to do with anti-Malaysian feelings.

He said the police had wrapped up the case with the arrest of the suspect.

- Bernama