Pekan: A 12-year-old boy was found drowned in an irrigation canal in Kampung Permatang Gepung, Nenasi near Pekan. Pekan police chief Supt Mohd Zaidi Mat Zin reported the incident, revealing that it occurred around 6.30 pm when the victim, Muhammad Alif Fahmi Abdullah, was swept away while catching fish with his younger brother.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, initial investigations indicated that Muhammad Alif had visited the canal earlier with his mother and three siblings at approximately 5.30 pm. Without their parents' knowledge, he later returned to the location with his younger brother and two friends.

The investigation further revealed that while the children were catching fish, Muhammad Alif was carried away by the canal's current. His younger brother and friends quickly alerted nearby villagers, who immediately began a search.

The boy was eventually discovered in a two-metre-deep section of the canal. Supt Mohd Zaidi mentioned that villagers brought him home, where medical officers from the Nenasi Health Clinic confirmed his death.

The body was then transported to the Pekan District Hospital Forensic Unit for a post-mortem examination, which verified that the cause of death was drowning.