SINGAPORE: DNA from two men have been found on the clothes of a Singaporean woman who was killed in Spain, a local newspaper reported on Tuesday (Mar 4).

Audrey Fang’s body was found in April 2024 with more than 30 stab wounds. Mitchell Ong, also a Singaporean, is suspected of killing her.

La Opinion de Murcia reported on Tuesday that the DNA was found on Ms Fang’s underwear and thigh.

An in-depth analysis of samples sent to a lab in Madrid shows that the DNA belonged to two men, the news outlet reported, citing sources close to the case.

The forensic report showed “no traces of semen were detected” in any of the samples.

But male DNA was found in small quantities on some of the swabs that were taken from the thigh and on various parts of the underwear that Ms Fang was wearing.

These were the only areas on her body where DNA traces were detected, reported La Opinion.

It added that “two distinct, partial male genetic profiles” were identified, and the profiles now need to be compared with samples from Ong to determine if it was a match.

Defence lawyer María Jesús Ruiz de Castañeda said the forensic report opens up the possibility that other individuals might be involved in Ms Fang’s death.

She told La Opinion that since the start of the legal proceedings, Ong has “firmly and consistently” maintained that he did not kill her.

She said “all necessary evidence” needs to be examined.

WHAT HAPPENED

Ms Fang had been travelling alone in Spain when her body was found near a parking area for lorries in the town of Abanilla on Apr 10, 2024. 

A preliminary autopsy report found that knife wounds and head trauma were the cause of her death, it was reported.

Ong, who was arrested six days after Ms Fang’s body was found, has been the sole suspect in her murder. 

Closed-circuit television cameras at the hotel where he was staying captured him leaving at around 5.45pm on Apr 9, 2024, dressed in a hoodie and black pants. 

Local news site La Verdad previously cited prosecutors saying that Ong drove Ms Fang to a parking lot near a restaurant in Abanilla at around 11pm on Apr 9, before the car left at 11.45pm.

According to the report, the prosecutors believe Ms Fang was no longer in the car by the time it left the carpark.

Ong returned to the hotel at around 2am on Apr 10, wearing jeans and a blue sweater.

Spanish police have proven that both Ms Fang's and Ong's mobile phones were together in Abanilla on the day she died, local newspaper Levante El Mercantil Valenciano previously reported.

According to the judge overseeing the case, it is inferred “without a doubt” that both Singaporeans were in the same area and in the same time slot on the day the crime was committed, based on data provided by mobile phone operators in Abanilla.

Ong and Ms Fang had known each other for more than 10 years and he was made a beneficiary of her Central Provident Fund (CPF) - a mandatory social security savings scheme - about six months before her death. 

Around the time Ms Fang nominated Ong as her beneficiary, almost S$200,000 (US$148,000) was deposited into her CPF account. 

Mr Manuel Martinez, the lawyer representing Ms Fang’s family, said previously that the 39-year-old’s CPF account had more than €430,000 (US$462,000).

In February, La Verdard reported that prosecutors were seeking a murder charge against Ong, with the private prosecution stating there was “sufficient evidence of criminality” to bring him to trial. 

However, the defence requested that the case be dismissed and called for new proceedings, including an independent expert analysis of Ong’s phone and his own testimony.

Ong’s lawyer argued that it was necessary to carry out various tests in the case, and that Ong has lost contact with his family.