The stolen shotgun and bullets recovered by police.
The stolen shotgun and bullets recovered by police.
KUCHING: A probe on the three suspects arrested by police for the murder of a Balai Ringin man in Bau has revealed they were actively involved in criminal activities both before and after the incident in June.
State CID chief SAC Dev Kumar said the suspects, who are currently under a seven-day remand order, were found to be involved in a spate of house breakings and attempted robberies since early this year.
Disclosing two of the cases perpetrated by the trio, Dev Kumar said one occurred on May 11 in Simunjan where the suspects broke into a shophouse there and stole two laptop computers.
“The other occurred on June 23, which was two days after the murder in Bau, when the three suspects broke into a house at Kampung Sungai Raya in Simunjan and stole a licensed Johnson 12-bore shotgun, valued at RM10,000, which had been kept by the owner in the ceiling of his house,” he said in a statement yesterday, adding the weapon was then sold to a man in Lundu.
Apart from the two cases, the state CID chief believed that the suspects were involved in several other unreported cases of house breaking and attempted robberies in Simunjan, Serian and Bau.
Following up on their investigation, a team from the state D9 unit led by Inspector Kalang Buda conducted a sweep of the main suspect’s rented flat at Taman Dahlia in Matang here on Friday night and managed to recover the two stolen laptops.
“At 1am today (yesterday), another D9 team led by DSP Sarifuddin Mustaffa went to the buyer’s house at Kampung Sempadi Cina in Lundu and seized the stolen shotgun along with 18 bullets.
“The buyer, a 49-year-old man, was arrested and will be investigated for possessing a firearm and bullets without a license or permit under Section 8(a) of the Firearms Act, and also for possession of stolen property,” said Dev Kumar.
He advised members of the public in possession of unlicensed or home-made shotguns to surrender the weapons to the nearest police station immediately.
“We (the police) understand that shotguns in Sarawak are primarily used for hunting and we do not intend to disrupt their legitimate use. However, a number of these weapons have been used to commit murders and robberies. This we will not allow,” he stressed, adding that unlicensed shotgun owners could face up to seven years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to RM10,000 upon conviction.