[UPDATED] Cops rescue kidnapped cosmetic agent in Thailand, nab seven suspects

KUALA LUMPUR – A Malaysian cosmetic entrepreneur who was kidnapped from her home in Tumpat, Kelantan on September 13 has been found and rescued by authorities in neighbouring Thailand.

Police Inspector-General Tan Sri Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani said she was brought back across the border to Malaysia today.

Seven local suspects have been detained in Kelantan, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur to help in investigations under Section 3(1) of the Kidnapping Act 1961 which deals with “abduction, wrongful restraint or wrongful confinement for ransom.”

A vehicle believed to have been used by the suspects to abduct the victim has been seized.

If convicted, they will face the death penalty or imprisonment for life. 

If not sentenced to death, the offender under this clause is also liable to whipping.

Acryl Sani said in a statement tonight that the Criminal Investigation Department in Bukit Aman had set up a special team to investigate and solve the case soon after the kidnapping took place.

“Through the investigations and close cooperation between the Royal Malaysian Police and the Royal Thai Police, which saw exchange of information and intelligence, we succeeded in tracking  and identifying the location of the victim in Thailand,” he said.

“The victim was eventually rescued with the support of the neighbouring authorities and was brought back to Malaysia on September 29 (today).”

Acryl Sani expressed his gratitude to the Thai police and the Malaysian Embassy there for the assistance and effort put in to save the woman.

On September 18, the police chief of Narathiwat province in southern Thailand had said that police there were distributing pictures of a suspect believed to be involved in the kidnapping.

He said several raids were conducted at hotels, warehouses, and residences but still failed to find the victims, suspects, and their hideouts.

The successful rescue ended a two-week long manhunt for the victim who was kidnapped by a group of assailants from her home in Kg Semat Jal, Wakaf Bharu in Tumpat, which is just 14km from the Thai border.

Earlier reports said the victim, Rosnazirah Mohd Naim, who is affectionately known as Azi, was abducted from her home by three men who had forced her into a Toyota Vios.

A relative, who declined to be named, said the group of men arrived at the house before one of them knocked on its door, which was answered by the victim.

The men had also allegedly pointed guns at the father of the victim and her daughter who were in the house at the time and told them to refrain from making any movements.

Harrowing footage of the incident taken by a closed-circuit television (CCTV) went viral on social media, showing the kidnapping taking place in just under three-minutes.

Several witnesses had told investigators that they had seen Azi being brought by boat into the Thai border, where she was held captive. The getaway car was later found abandoned at Kg Kuala Jambu, in Pengkalan Kubor beside the border, on the same evening.

During preliminary investigations, police reportedly believed that the 36-year-old husband of the victim was having a disagreement with a member of a drug trafficking syndicate he had links with. – The Vibes, September 29, 2022