Malaysian cop allegedly rapes 2 women he stopped at lockdown roadblock
He was on duty at movement control order roadblock when he stopped them and allegedly abducted and raped them at a hotel
PETALING JAYA: A Malaysian police officer singled out two foreign women at a movement control order (MCO) roadblock, then allegedly abducted and raped them at a hotel.
The policeman, an inspector in his 30s who was on duty in Petaling Jaya, was arrested after ground work and reviewing of surveillance footage. .
It was learnt that the women were stopped at a roadblock on Friday night and were kept against their will at a nearby hotel for more than 24 hours before they were rescued by police.
The officer in charge of Petaling Jaya district Assistant Commissioner Nik Ezanee Mohd Faisal said they were alerted to the incident on Saturday and began investigating at once.
Mr Nik Ezanee said police conducted two raids in Petaling Jaya around 9.30pm on Saturday, including one at a hotel where two women from Mongolia, aged 20 and 33, were rescued.
"The inspector was arrested at a separate location," he said
"Based on our investigations both women were working in vice, but that does not make them any less the victims here.
"They were being held against their will at the hotel and we rescued them at 9.30pm on Saturday before taking them to the hospital for a medical evaluation," he said, adding that neither woman had valid documents.
Mr Nik Ezanee said: "I am deeply saddened and disappointed over this case... We will ensure stern action is taken using all available laws."
Malaysia's health ministry reported 153 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus yesterday, raising the cumulative total to 4,683, the highest in South-east Asia.
The latest data includes three new deaths, raising the total number of fatalities from the outbreak to 76. The ministry said 45 per cent of all confirmed cases have recovered.
SOUTH-EAST ASIA
Elsewhere in South-east Asia, Indonesia yesterday imposed curbs on public transport ahead of the annual exodus to home villages that marks the end of the Muslim fasting month, in a bid to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
The curbs are far short of the calls by some health experts for an outright ban on the Ramadan travel home as the number of cases and deaths from the disease jump.
Indonesia confirmed a record daily increase of 46 deaths yesterday to 373, the highest official toll in East Asia after China. The number of people infected rose by 399 yesterday to 4,241, also the biggest daily increase.
About 75 million Indonesians usually stream home from cities at the end of Ramadan, due this year at the end of May. There are concerns this could further ignite the spread of the disease.
Public buses, trains, airplanes and ships will be allowed to fill only half their passenger seats, under a new regulation that also limits occupation of a private car to just half the seats, while a motorcycle may be ridden only by one person.
The Philippines also saw a record jump in coronavirus-related fatalities, with 50 more reported yesterday taking the total to 297, with 4,648 infections.
South-east Asia as a whole has recorded some 18,000 infections and nearly 800 deaths. - THE STAR, REUTERS
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