SEREMBAN – Police have arrested a couple in relation to a video of a family purportedly drinking poison that went viral on social media.
Seremban district police chief Mohd Said Ibrahim in a statement today said the husband-and-wife pair, both aged 29, were arrested following a report lodged on the clip.
The report was made following concerns that the clip could spur others to copy the act, he said, adding that elements of child abuse are also present.
The man was arrested at 10.20pm yesterday, and his wife at 3.15am today.
The 16-minute, three-second video showed the man expressing his dissatisfaction with the government’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and saying the worsening situation is causing people to suffer depression.
To demonstrate such “depression and stress”, the man “role-played a family suicide” by giving “poison” to the couple’s 9-month-old son before he and his wife, too, drank it.
Police are investigating the case under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code, Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 and Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001.
Meanwhile, Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk Seri Abd Jalil Hassan confirmed receiving a report on the video, which was uploaded by a Facebook account belonging to one Reuben George.
“The clip shows three members of a family drinking (what is purportedly) poison due to experiencing depression, and the man also criticised the government’s Covid-19 handling and urged for drastic action to address the issue, which is causing stress and depression among the people, and contributing to suicides,” he said in a statement.
“In the video, the (male) suspect said it was just role play and that the liquid was not actually poison.” – Bernama, July 15, 2021
