The death of a woman last week which was initially ruled as a sudden death case has now been reclassified as a homicide, following the autopsy results.

The decomposed body of the woman was found by a jogger at the foot of a hill near Kampung Sg Lada on Sept 12.

Labuan police chief, Supt Adzhar Othman said the autopsy showed the Filipino woman, an entertainment outlet's guest relations officer (GRO), was a victim of physical assault.

He said the woman's murder could be caused by jealousy.

"The post-mortem conducted on Sept 15 by the Queen Elizabeth Hospital's Pathology and Forensic Department, found cracks and slash wounds on the woman's skull, chin and wrists, believed to have been hit by sharp and hard objects.

The deceased's chin bone was also missing," he told Bernama.

Adzhar said the autopsy revealed that the women died two to four weeks before her body was found.

"We are investigating the case under Section 302 of the Penal Code. We will leave no stone unturned to solve this case. As of now, there is no arrest made," he said.

Adzhar, the forensic unit of the Sabah police contingent and district CID chief had on Sept 15, visited the scene where they found a pair of earrings and hair strands.

"A family from the Philippines has claimed the victim to be their relative, but we are still liaising with the Philippine Consulate here to confirm the identity of the victim, and the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) test will be conducted," said Adzhar - BERNAMA