A COUPLE has died after eating a poisonous pufferfish they had bought online.
Ng Chuan Sing and his wife Lim Siew Guan, both in their early 80s, fried the poisonous fish and had it for lunch.
The elderly couple from Johor, Malaysia, had bought the killer fish from their regular fishmonger.
They both started feeling ill after the meal, according to local authorities.
Lim, 83, started having "breathing difficulties and shivers" on the same day, while her husband started showing similar symptoms an hour after eating the fish.
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Even though they were both rushed to intensive care, Lim was pronounced dead at 7pm local time, according to CNN.
Her husband spent eight days in a coma before dying on Saturday morning.
The pair's daughter Ng Ai Lee demanded accountability for her parents' death as she spoke outside their home before their funeral.
She said: "Those responsible for their deaths should be held accountable under the law and I hope the authorities will speed up investigations,
"I also hope the Malaysian government will beef up enforcement and help to raise public awareness on pufferfish poisoning to prevent such incidents from happening again."
According to Malaysian laws selling poisonous food such as pufferfish meat is banned and those caught face huge fines - or risk being jailed for up to two years.
Nevertheless, the killer fish can still be found in Malaysia's wet markets, Aileen Tan, a marine biologist and director at the Universiti Sains Malaysia Centre for Marine and Coastal Studies said.
She said: "It’s considered exotic and tends to attract consumers.
"Once pufferfish have been cleaned and sold as slices, it is nearly impossible for the public to know the type of fish that they purchased.
"As for sellers, it is debatable on their (part) if they are aware (of the risks).”
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"There needs to be more awareness about the risks of consuming puffer fish – maybe authorities need to look at special certifications for vendors and suppliers."
Known as "fugu" the pufferfish is considered a high-priced delicacy despite its dangers.
The fish’s organs, as well as skin, blood and bones, contain high concentrations of tetrodotoxin- which can cause horrific symptoms including convulsions and respiratory paralysis before death.
