Suspected ISIS militant confessed to suicide plot
28-year-old Malaysian had weapons, documents related to terror group
Malaysia's police chief said yesterday that a suspected militant arrested in a train station in Kuala Lumpur had confessed to planning a suicide attack in the country.
The 28-year-old Malaysian man is believed to be a member of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militant group and was arrested on Friday with weapons and documents related to ISIS, the police said.
In a statement, Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar said the suspect confessed to planning a suicide attack in Malaysia after receiving orders from a foreign ISIS member in Syria.
"The suspect is also responsible for hanging ISIS flags at several locations in the states of Terengganu, Perak, Selangor and Johor, in order to warn the government to stop arresting ISIS members in Malaysia," Mr Khalid said in the statement. No further details were given on where and how he was planning the attack.
Malaysia has been on high alert since a bomb and gun attack in Jakarta on Thursday. It has beefed up security in public areas and its borders.
THREE OTHERS
Mr Khalid said three other people suspected of being supporters of ISIS were also arrested between Jan 11 and Jan 15.
The three were arrested at Kuala Lumpur International Airport after they returned from Turkey, where they were detained for trying to make their way into Syria to join ISIS.
The three suspects are aged between 23 and 28.
A picture of the arrest released by police appeared to indicate that one of the suspects was a woman.
Police said the three were recruited by a known Malaysian ISIS member named Muhammad Wanndy Mohamed Jedi, who is based in Syria.
He has been linked to a video released last year that showed a man being beheaded there.
Before today's arrest, Malaysia had detained 145 people since 2013 on suspicion of links with ISIS.
In September, Malaysian police thwarted a plot to detonate bombs in KL's touristy Bukit Bintang area.
Other recent plots disrupted by Malaysian security forces included plans to raid army camps and seize weapons.
Malaysia's deputy home minister warned that South-east Asia faces the threat of ISIS-inspired attacks designed to "glamorise terrorism".
- Reuters.
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