BUTTERWORTH – Eleven people, including a teenager, have been arrested for allegedly breaking movement control order rules during a funeral procession in Jalan Siram here on June 17.
Seberang Prai Utara police chief Noorzainy Mohd Noor said the suspects were identified by a task force comprising D7 and D9 teams, and believed to be affiliated with organised crime groups.
He added that the suspects, aged between 15 and 35, were picked up from 6pm to 10pm in Mak Mandin and other locations here.
“Apart from the 11 suspects, we are also tracking down other individuals believed to be involved in the incident.”
He said the funeral service manager told police he had prohibited the group from removing the casket from a vehicle before marching to the crematorium, but they went ahead with it, Bernama reported.
The 15 to 20 individuals are believed to be friends of the 23-year-old man who died due to tuberculosis at Seberang Jaya Hospital on June 16, he added.
“All the suspects will be taken to the Butterworth sessions court so police can apply for remand orders to detain them to facilitate investigations.”
The task force was put together by the Crime Investigation Department.
Police initiated an investigation after a video of the funeral went viral for allegedly violating the standard operating procedures of the current lockdown.
Noorzainy had yesterday said an investigation has been opened after a TikTok user named @budakpenang7 uploaded a video of the procession.
In the one-minute clip, a group of young Indian men is seen carrying a coffin for over 50m to a Hindu cemetery in Jalan Siram last Thursday. There are also loudspeakers, drumming and banner-carrying.
The case is being investigated under Section 43 of the Societies Act 1966, Section 269 of the Penal Code and Regulation 9 of the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases 2021. – The Vibes, June 21, 2021
