PETALING JAYA (ANN/THE STAR) – Close to 70 Malaysian police officers have been apprehended in the past 10-weeks due to alleged misconduct in cases reported nationwide.
These 70 individuals were arrested in connection with six separate incidents across Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Johor, Negri Sembilan, Perak, and Kedah.
The offenses they are accused of range from abduction and theft to drug trafficking and substance abuse.
According to Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay, in a recent news report revealed that from January to July, 62 personnel were removed from the police force, and while hundreds faced disciplinary action for diverse offenses.
Last year, 154 officers and rank-and-file personnel were expelled from the 135,000-strong police force, marking a significant increase from 117 in 2021.
A recent case on September 26 involved five policemen, including an officer-in-charge of a police station (OCS), who were arrested in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur, for abduction, wrongful confinement and assault.
It was just a day earlier that Ayob Khan had cautioned personnel in the force to behave themselves and not abuse their power.
He also said cases of rogue police personnel are on the rise and reminded personnel that action would be taken against superior officers who turned a blind eye to the wrongdoings of their subordinates.
Bukit Aman Integrity and Standard Compliance Department (JIPS) director Commissioner Datuk Seri Azri Ahmad said the cases of errant police personnel are not taken lightly as they could erode public confidence and put the force in a bad light.
“We always act promptly when such cases are reported, and there is no compromise. The first thing we do is remove the errant personnel from their posts and distance them from the public so they cannot continue abusing their power. An internal or criminal investigation, or both, is then carried out depending on the offence committed,” he told The Star.
Comm Azri said that apart from being charged in court, internal actions against police personnel include suspension, removal from active duty, demotion, freeze in promotion and pay cut.
Criminologist Datuk Dr P Sundramoorthy of Universiti Sains Malaysia’s Centre for Policy Research said the rise in cases of police misconduct and power abuse over a period of just over two months is worrying.
“These are cases that went public. How many more are unreported? There should be zero tolerance for rogue cops, and those who violate the law must have stern action taken against them.
“Accountability is the key component, and the responsibility lies on the shoulders of the heads of department to weed out such bad hats. It is also high time for the government to form an independent commission to investigate such cases involving members of the police force.
“Often, people are reluctant to report any unpleasant encounter with crooked cops. When such cases are exposed, it will restore public confidence and encourage people to step up and lodge formal complaints,” he said.
The latest case occurred in Desa Petaling where five policemen, including an inspector with shady alliances with gambling den syndicates, allegedly abducted a 26-year-old man on the order of the syndicate’s leader before confining the victim at a police station.
The victim, who was the caretaker of a gambling den, was allegedly snatched from a restaurant and assaulted after his employer accused him of stealing more than MYR13,000 and demanded that he repay three times the sum.
Kuala Lumpur police chief Commissioner Datuk Allaudeen Abdul Majid said the case took place because the suspects lacked integrity and put self-interest above their duty as policemen.
On September 18, four policemen, one with a previous criminal record for extortion, were arrested for aiding two suspects to steal 40m of copper cables belonging to Telekom Malaysia in Taman Kanagapuram, Petaling Jaya.
On August 29, 37 police personnel, including officers, were arrested in Johor by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission for taking kickbacks and tampering with urine samples meant for testing drug abuse since 2018.
On August 19, 15 policemen were arrested in a raid along with two public prosecutors for misconduct after they patronised an entertainment outlet in Seremban.
On August 10, a 32-year-old policeman from the Seberang Perai district police headquarters was arrested for drug pushing in Sungai Petani, Kedah. He was found in possession of over five kg of syabu.
On July 8, six policemen who were arrested at an entertainment outlet in Ipoh tested positive for drug abuse. The raiding party from Bukit Aman also recovered drugs from the men.
