23-4-2024 (SINGAPORE) In the mysterious killing of Singaporean Audrey Fang in Spain, a pair of limited-edition Nike sneakers found in the possession of the prime suspect could prove to be a critical piece of evidence for Spanish authorities investigating the case.
On April 9, the 39-year-old Fang, who was on a solo trip to Spain, left her belongings at her hotel and vanished without a trace. Her body, bearing 30 stab wounds, was discovered the following day near a parking area for lorries in the town of Abanilla.
A preliminary autopsy report cited by Spanish media outlet La Verdad de Murcia revealed that knife wounds and head trauma were the cause of Fang’s death. The suspected killer, Mitchell Ong, a 43-year-old Singaporean, was arrested in Alicante on April 16 and appeared in court last Friday.
According to a report by La Verdad on Tuesday, detectives have zeroed in on the €935 (US$1,000) limited-edition Nike sneakers found in Ong’s hotel room at the time of his arrest. Cash amounting to €3,760 and S$1,000 was also seized from the room.
The newspaper stated that the soles of the shoes match the footprints found at the crime scene. The Spanish Civil Guard has sent a sample of the soil embedded in the soles for laboratory analysis to determine if it matches the soil found on Fang’s body. Authorities are also seeking to compare the sample with the sandstone found in the Abanilla area.
The exclusivity of the sneakers, which retail for €935 on the luxury clothing website Farfetch and are sized at European 48.5 – corresponding to Ong’s build and 1.88m height – has made them particularly significant in the investigation.
Court documents seen by La Verdad have detailed other evidence mounting against Ong. A judge in the Magistrates’ Court of Cieza, overseeing the case, noted Ong’s attire on the evening of April 9 when Fang was last seen and when he returned a few hours later.
Closed-circuit television cameras at Ong’s hotel captured him leaving at around 5.45 pm, dressed in a hoodie and black pants. He returned in the early hours of April 10 at around 2.06 am, wearing jeans and a blue sweater.
Ong, who got married in 2012 and owned several businesses in Singapore, was due to meet his Ukrainian girlfriend at the same hotel the following day, according to La Verdad.
Spanish police have proven that both Fang’s and Ong’s mobile phones were together in Abanilla on the day she died, reported local newspaper Levante El Mercantil Valenciano. The newspaper added that Fang was not sexually assaulted and that the two had known each other for many years.
The judge stated that it is “without a doubt” inferred that both Singaporeans were in the same area and time slot on the day the crime was committed, based on data provided by mobile phone operators in Abanilla.
While Ong remains remanded in custody, pending investigations, and will remain in jail due to the seriousness of the offence and his perceived flight risk, questions surrounding the motive for the killing remain unanswered.
Levante El Mercantil Valenciano reported that there might have been an “economic motive” for the killing, citing sources that claimed Fang had transferred money to an unidentified third person. La Verdad also corroborated the potential “economic motive,” adding that Fang had participated in a type of investment fund. However, the possibility of a “sentimental issue” as the motive has not been ruled out.
As the family of Audrey Fang awaits the repatriation of her body, expected to happen this week, they are grappling with the shock and anguish of her brutal killing.
Speaking to CNA on Monday, her brother Benjamin Fang, 35, and cousin, who flew to Spain to search for her, expressed their devastation. “We’re just very sad and horrified that she was taken in such a horrible way,” Benjamin Fang said.
Fang, an architect who worked in a design services company while keeping her late mother’s floral business alive, had dreamed of retiring early and moving to Bali with her cousin, to live in a home she would personally design.
While their lawyer in Spain has stated that Ong’s trial could take a year or more, the family is hoping to uncover more answers about the circumstances surrounding Fang’s killing. “It’s still quite ambiguous to us,” Benjamin Fang added. “In the meantime, we’re going to ask more friends and family if they’ve seen this person, if they know of any relationship … if anybody knows anything about this guy.”
