[UPDATED] Cops nab suspect in sexual assault cases at Tamarind Square

KUALA LUMPUR – Police have arrested a man they believe could be the culprit behind a spate of sexual assault cases reported at Tamarind Square in Cyberjaya.

“(I) was just informed (the) suspect has been arrested, alhamdulillah,” said Sepang district police chief assistant commissioner Wan Kamarul Azran Wan Yusof in a brief update.

This comes following two reports of women being groped and molested in the parking lot and second-floor lobby of the mall yesterday afternoon, with witnesses taking to social media to relate their ordeals.

Earlier, police said a manhunt was on for an alleged sexual predator who molested at least two women within 15 minutes in Tamarind Square in Cyberjaya yesterday.

Wan Kamarul said the victim was attacked after being approached by the man who claimed he wanted to help her load up her car with her shopping items.

“The woman was approached just as she reached her car on the basement level, where the man, even after being told his help was not needed, continued to help the woman load up her car boot.

“He then suddenly groped the victim’s buttocks before fleeing the scene.”

Wan Kamarul also confirmed receiving a second police report of a similar incident that took place in the same building yesterday, some 15 minutes apart.

He said the victim reported standing near the lift lobby on the second floor of the building when she was approached from behind by a man.

“He then embraced and molested the victim from the back, who tried to free herself, but was pushed to the ground as he fled.”

Wan Kamarul then said investigators were on the hunt for the man who was last seen in a black long-sleeved top, with a black sling bag, and appeared to have crossed eyes.

He added that images of the man were caught by nearby closed-circuit television cameras, but police chose to not share the images as to not jeopardise investigations.

“Investigations are ongoing to locate the suspect. We chose against sharing images of the alleged suspect to avoid him possibly absconding,” he said in a statement earlier today.

He also confirmed another such incident took place there last year without providing further details.

He said investigations are being carried out under Section 354 of the Penal Code for outraging the modesty of a person.

This comes following two viral posts on social media that related to separate incidents, which supposedly took place in Tamarind Square yesterday.

The first was by a Twitter user known as @asymqw_ who related how she heard a woman screaming in the parking lot just as she arrived in Tamarind Square in the afternoon.

Another harrasment case in Tamarind Square basement parking & this time around jadi depan mata i. Ya Allah, dengan aku aku shakingggg dengar this One lady menjerit. Masatu i just Parked my car and dengar suara org menjerit lama gila and very loud.

— MQ (@asymqw__) April 5, 2022

She said that as she got out of her car, she then saw a woman in tears and visibly shaken.

“She asked if I witnessed the incident or saw the culprit, but I did not see anything because I just got down from my car,” read the tweet.

Another similar tweet by @nrsyfreyna posted hours later alleged an incident that happened prior to the first in the same parking lot.

sex maniac strike again at Tamarind Square and this time my friend got groped. a few minutes after that, another girl got assaulted by the same guy. the police informed us that Tamarind’s management has been silent about the issues.

total of cases today: 2

— sugarcane (@nrsyfreyna) April 5, 2022

“Sex maniac strike (sic) again in Tamarind Square and this time my friend got groped. A few minutes after that another girl got assaulted by the same guy,” read the tweet. – The Vibes, April 6, 2022