Elmina crash: Victims’ remains to be released earliest on Monday - IGP

KLANG – Families of the victims involved in the Elmina plane crash could claim their loved ones' remains earliest by Monday.

Inspector General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain said the DNA test carried out to identify the victims' identities would take time.

"A total of 22 DNA samples have been collected from the heirs but the matching of DNA with the remains found from the crash site will take between three to four hours per person," he told reporters here at the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital (HTAR).

Razarudin also added that the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) would manage all the processes, such as transporting the victims to their respective hometowns as well as performing funeral rites.

"Jais has made the process easier and there are 10 hearses with police escorts ready to transport the bodies after all the DNA matching has been settled.

"The police would escort until the Selangor border and Putrajaya but after the border, there would be Mobile Patrol Vehicle (MPV) to escort," he said.

Commenting further, he urged the heirs and the families to not wait here.

"The earliest to collect and see the body would be on Monday and I advised the families to stay at a hotel instead of standing here in the hot sun.

"Once the forensics has completed, we will inform them, " he said.

Yesterday, a private aircraft crashed at Elmina while it was en route to Subang Airport from Langkawi International Airport at about 2.45pm.

The crash claimed the lives of 10 victims which comprised eight people on board the aircraft, as well as an e-hailing driver and a motorcyclist who were hit by the crashing plane.