The Murder of Fong Swee Fuan

The shooting in Marang

On July 23, 2021, Fong Swee Fuan, 65, was killed behind a Chinese temple in Taman Raya Wakaf Tapai, Marang, Terengganu. Fong had previously served as the MCA’s Marang division chief. His nephew, Teo Hock Beng, was also shot and survived with an injury to his arm.

Ong Chow Lee, a former member of Malaysia’s Volunteer Corps Department (RELA) and a friend of Fong, was arrested the same day. He was charged with Fong’s murder and with attempting to murder Teo. Early proceedings recorded the murder charge under section 302 of the Penal Code.

Guilty pleas and sentencing

On July 9, 2024, at the Kuala Terengganu High Court, Ong pleaded guilty to murdering Fong. He also pleaded guilty to the separate attempted-murder charge involving Teo.

The High Court sentenced Ong to 30 years in prison for murder and 13 years for attempted murder. The terms were ordered to run concurrently from the date of his arrest, July 23, 2021. The archive treats the two offences separately: Fong is the murder victim in this case file, while Teo survived the second offence.

The challenge to the murder conviction

Ong later sought to undo the murder conviction. His appeal argued, among other things, that he had been misled about the consequences of pleading guilty and that language issues affected his understanding of the plea proceedings.

The Court of Appeal rejected those arguments and upheld the murder conviction and 30-year sentence. Published grounds reported that the High Court had confirmed Ong’s understanding of the proceedings, that he was represented by lawyers and that his plea was supported by his admission of the case facts and prosecution exhibits.

Federal Court: the final appeal

On May 20, 2026, a three-judge Federal Court panel chaired by Justice Rhodzariah Bujang unanimously dismissed Ong’s final appeal. The panel found no merit in his challenge and left the murder conviction and 30-year sentence in place.

Reporting on the Federal Court proceeding also notes that Ong did not pursue the same appeal against the attempted-murder conviction involving Teo. The decisive point for this case file is that the apex court rejected the final challenge to Fong’s murder conviction.

Current status

This case is classified as Solved / Adjudicated. Ong Chow Lee pleaded guilty to Fong Swee Fuan’s murder in the High Court, the Court of Appeal upheld the conviction, and the Federal Court dismissed his final appeal on May 20, 2026. The case is therefore not presented as an unresolved allegation or a pending murder prosecution.