SIBU: Five more men who were arrested yesterday are expected to be kicked out of Sarawak under the Emergency Ordinance for serial housebreaking and theft.
Sibu police chief ACP Shafie Ismail who confirmed this, said the first arrest was on Sept 14.
Since then, a total of seven suspects had been arrested for questioning.
Two were released on police bail after questioning and the five were further detained due to their suspected involvement in the serial theft cases.
“There is no place for crimes in Sibu. The police will continue to act tough. Already, 14 suspects have been detained this year under the Emergency Ordinance, with nine having been kicked out,” Shafie said.
The five are the first among the 14 to be detained for housebreaking and theft.
“The rest were kicked out for violent crimes such as extortion, criminal intimidation, illegal rubber tapping and others.”
He said the five would be detained for 60 days and an order from the Home Ministry would come later on the further action to be taken on them.
Detainees under the Emergency Ordinance are normally detained at Simpang Renggam.
They can also be put under restricted residence.
The police chief said the five detainees were aged between 25 and 37.
“They work as a group in the commission of their crimes. One of them is the mastermind and a former Axe Gang member who returned from Simpang Renggam before the last Lunar New Year.”
Now that he is under detention, the 36-year-old could be sent to the detention centre again.
Shafie identified the mastermind as the youngest in the gang, but stand out because he is the smartest.
After the arrest of the five in mid-September, the police believe the group could be involved in dozens of crime cases.
The loot seized from them is worth hundreds of thousands of ringgit.
They include a Hyundai car, television sets, electrical tools, computer sets, notebooks and their accessories like key boards and CPUs, jewellery and others.
The Axe Gang once terrorised Sibu with a string of armed robberies while armed with axes and other dangerous weapons.
The gang leader was gunned down and a gang member was arrested and imprisoned. He is now among the five detainees.