Since January, Penang police have encountered a mysterious case of deceased foreign nationals, whose bodies are dumped wrapped from head to toe similar to a burial shroud.  

In the latest incident on Aug 11, passers-by stumbled upon a body wrapped in a bed sheet along the roadside near Medan Selera Bukit Minyak on Aug 11.

This brings the total of bodies discovered to nine.

A police source told Malaysiakini that all nine victims were males and most of them were from Myanmar.

However, the source declined to comment on the nationality of the latest victim.

Asked if the cases were related, he said: "The cases are treated as isolated cases as no links have been found yet."

Meanwhile, Bernama quoted Penang police chief Abdul Rahim Hanafi as saying that the latest victim was in his 30s and had no identification papers.

He also revealed that most of the cases were in the Seberang Perai Tengah (SPT) district.

"We are taking this matter very seriously," he said, urging those with information to come forward to facilitate police investigations.

Rahim said initial investigations revealed that the latest victim did not suffer external injuries but the police have not ruled out foul play.

He added that the police are also not discounting the possibility of the victim having died elsewhere before his body was dumped near the food court.