This Man Has Been Robbing Women In Shah Alam During Zohor Prayers
"At the suraus, he would always wear a robe to show he was there for prayers but he was actually looking for female victims."
By Nandini Balakrishnan — 26 Oct 2017, 05:34 PM
The 39-year-old thief who has been robbing female worshipers in suraus across Shah Alam for the past few months has finally been arrested
New Straits Times (NST) reported that the man usually goes to the suraus under the pretense of performing Zohor prayers but instead robs the women there.
He was finally arrested by officers from the Shah Alam district Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on 13 October in Kelana Jaya, Petaling Jaya.
In the past four months, the thief had stolen cash, jewellery, and handphones worth around RM9,000
Shah Alam district police chief Assistant Commissioner Shafien Mamat shows a screenshot from the CCTV recordings that managed to capture the thief at a surau in Section 4.
Image via Faiz Anuar/New Straits TimesIt was reported that the man had robbed women in June, July, August, and October in three suraus in Bukit Jelutong and Section 4. He had also allegedly robbed teachers at a religious school in Kelana Jaya.
"At the suraus, he would always wear a robe to show he was there for prayers but he was actually looking for female victims especially those who were there on their own.
"He would rob them, threatening them with a parang (machete) and tying them up with phone charger cables. He would only attack during Zohor prayers to take advantage of the smaller congregation," explained Shah Alam district police chief Assistant Commissioner Shafien Mamat in the NST report.
Earlier this month, on 6 October, the serial robber, allegedly molested one of the women at Surau Al-Ikhlas in Bukit Jelutong
After sexually assaulting her, he had reportedly demanded for her ATM card pin after stealing the card. He later went to an ATM machine at a petrol station in Kampung Melayu Subang to withdraw the lady's money.
The Shah Alam CID managed to identify the man from the CCTV recordings which showed him withdrawing RM800 from the bank account of the woman he molested.
"All of the victims had identified him through the recordings and we made the arrest a week later," said Shafien during a press conference at the Shah Alam district police headquarters yesterday, 25 October.
It was reported that the divorcee, who is a father of five, was also previously linked to a cheating case
When the authorities arrested the thief in his rented home in Kelana Jaya, they found items he used to rob his victims such as parang, cables, a knife, and clothing. They also discovered belongings of his victims in the house.
The perpetrator is currently under remand and will be investigated for armed robbery, voluntarily causing hurt while committing robbery, and outraging modesty.
Shafien also urged victims of similar crimes to come forward and make police report on the incidents, while stressing on the importance of having CCTVs in suraus and mosques which can help the authorities in situations like these.