The soldier who stole explosive ordnance from a camp in Kedah had perhaps wanted to sell the copper in them and did not have an intention to kill, said the police.

"The motive is simple. Those stuff (anti-tank rockets) have copper, maybe he collected this to sell as scrap metal," said deputy inspector-general of police Noor Rashid Ibrahim.

Asked if the soldier smuggled out the explosives to kill anybody, he shook his head and replied: "No... it was to sell."

Noor Rashid (left) was commenting on the case of army personnel Ayub Hashim, 34, who had smuggled the rockets out of the Hobart Camp in Gurun that later caused a fatal blast in his house.

The massive explosion also damaged more than 40 houses in the area.

Noor Rashid also reiterated that there was no terror element or a motive for murder.

He said as the explosive contained good quality metal, the deceased probably believed he could get a good price for the scrap.

"For these people, the explosives are not important, they are concerned about the metal... (to earn) extra income," he told reporters in Kuala Lumpur.

'Dismantling bombs for metal'

Noor Rashid said similar incidents have happened in countries like Vietnam where people lose their lives or were maimed.

"There are villagers who collect old war-time bombs, dismantle them and take out the metal to be sold as scrap metal.

"So, I think the army personnel tried to get these materials to sell them," he added.

High explosive anti-tank (Heat) rockets like those Ayob is accused of stealing contain a large piece of copper shaped like a hollow cone.

It is designed to punch through tank armour as a jet of molten metal when the explosives behind it detonate upon contact with the target.

Prior to the Christmas eve explosion, a witness was reported seeing Ayub grinding the explosive behind his house, according to Kedah Criminal Investigation Department chief Nashir Ya.

Nashir also confirmed that the mortar shell was military-issued, after discovering dented half-cut splinters with marks indicating that it was meant for the Malaysian security forces' use.

The soldier, his eight-year-old daughter Nur Idayu Syahirah Ayob and his neighbour's son Aqif Mohd Shahrizal, 4, were instantly killed in the blast.

His six-months pregnant wife Sharifah Azlina Hashim, 30, succumbed to her injuries later.