By DPA,
Sydney : Australian government officials responded to public anger Tuesday by delaying the release of the Malaysian killer of world-renowned heart transplant surgeon Victor Chang.
The New South Wales Parole Authority rescinded its decision to release Phillip Lim Choon Tee next month pending talks with the state government. By November, Lim will have served his minimum 18-year jail sentence.
Chang, 54, was shot dead in a bungled extortion attempt by Lim and Australian national Liew Chew Seng in 1991.
Liew and Lim were sentenced to 26 and 24 years, respectively.
Lim is to be deported to Malaysia when he leaves prison.
The murder of China-born Chang shocked the nation. He had performed 260 heart transplant operations and was head of heart surgery at Sydney’s St Vincent’s Hospital.