Nine foreigners found chained and starving in house
THE STAR
Barefoot and bound: The nine rescued foreigners pictured with their legs still in chains soon after they were rescued by police in Alor Setar.
ALOR SETAR: Nine foreigners, kidnapped from around the country by a gang, have been rescued by the police from a secluded house in Pokok Asam, Pendang, here.
When they were found at about 1.30am yesterday, the men aged between 22 and 45, had their legs chained and were starving.
Five men, including a Bangladeshi, a Myanmar national and a 15-year-old boy were arrested.
Eight of the victims are from Bangladesh, believed to have been abducted in Sungai Petani on Aug 29 and in Perak, and a Myanmar national kidnapped from Kuala Lumpur.
Kedah police chief acting Comm Datuk Asri Yusoff said the gang’s modus operandi was very simple.
“They would kidnap the victims, call their family members and threaten to kill them if a RM15,000 ransom was not paid.
“The foreign suspects acted as the interpreters to call the families.
“The ransom was transferred into the bank account of one of the local suspects via telegraphic transfer.
“The gang was also involved in a number of cases in Penang,” he told reporters at the state police headquarters here yesterday.
The father of the 15-year-old suspect was also among those arrested, said Comm Asri, adding that two of the local suspects had previous records for kidnapping.
“We are looking for a local woman and a Bangladeshi man to help in investigations.
“We also seized 18 handphones, two parang, several iron rods, a long chain with padlocks and a van from the premises,” he said.
The suspects are under remand pending investigation for wrongful confinement under Section 342 of the Penal Code, the Kidnapping Act and Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act, said Comm Asri.
Police, he added, were also trying to determine how many such cases they had been involved in.
Barefoot and bound: The nine rescued foreigners pictured with their legs still in chains soon after they were rescued by police in Alor Setar.
ALOR SETAR: Nine foreigners, kidnapped from around the country by a gang, have been rescued by the police from a secluded house in Pokok Asam, Pendang, here.
When they were found at about 1.30am yesterday, the men aged between 22 and 45, had their legs chained and were starving.
Five men, including a Bangladeshi, a Myanmar national and a 15-year-old boy were arrested.
Eight of the victims are from Bangladesh, believed to have been abducted in Sungai Petani on Aug 29 and in Perak, and a Myanmar national kidnapped from Kuala Lumpur.
Kedah police chief acting Comm Datuk Asri Yusoff said the gang’s modus operandi was very simple.
“They would kidnap the victims, call their family members and threaten to kill them if a RM15,000 ransom was not paid.
“The foreign suspects acted as the interpreters to call the families.
“The ransom was transferred into the bank account of one of the local suspects via telegraphic transfer.
“The gang was also involved in a number of cases in Penang,” he told reporters at the state police headquarters here yesterday.
The father of the 15-year-old suspect was also among those arrested, said Comm Asri, adding that two of the local suspects had previous records for kidnapping.
“We are looking for a local woman and a Bangladeshi man to help in investigations.
“We also seized 18 handphones, two parang, several iron rods, a long chain with padlocks and a van from the premises,” he said.
The suspects are under remand pending investigation for wrongful confinement under Section 342 of the Penal Code, the Kidnapping Act and Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act, said Comm Asri.
Police, he added, were also trying to determine how many such cases they had been involved in.
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