SHOTGUNS WENT MISSING IN 2015
District Rela chief did not report disappearance, says officer
EMBUN MAJID ALOR STAR news@nst.com.my
MORE questions have surfaced as police probe into the theft of 26 shotguns issued to the People’s Volunteer Corps (Rela) unit in Selama, Perak. Investigators have found that the weapons were first discovered missing in 2015 during the handing over of duty for the Rela chief ’s post in Selama.
The new district Rela chief had refused to sign a form to acknowledge receiving the firearms inventory from his predecessor upon learning that 26 of the 300 shotguns issued to the unit were unaccounted for. However, no report was lodged at that time.
The theft was only discovered last month when the federal police’s Firearms Licensing Enforcement unit carried out an audit at the Rela Northern Region Training Centre in Bukit Selambau, Sungai Petani.
They discovered that 26 of the shotguns issued to the Selama district Rela unit were missing.
This was revealed by Kedah police chief Datuk Asri Yusoff here yesterday.
“Based on the audit report, police have picked up the former Selama district Rela chief, who had been transferred to Pengkalan Hulu.
“The 55-year-old suspect admitted to selling the shotguns at between RM1,000 and RM3,000 each to Rela and Territorial Army members, as well as civilians,” he said.
Asri said the man, who had served in Selama from 2009 to 2015, only sold the firearms to his close friends.
He said police had recovered 13 shotguns, a homemade air rifle and 300 rounds of ammunition with the arrest of 14 men, aged between 29 and 56.
Six of the shotguns were recovered in Taiping, two in Kerian and three each in Selama and Gerik, all in Perak.
“Eleven of the buyers are Rela members in Selama, two are civilians and the other one is a Territorial Army member based in Sungai Buloh, Selangor. Three of them have theft and gambling records.”
Asri said police had identified the buyers of the remaining 12 shotguns and were tracking them down.
“We believe most of them are from Perak and we urge them to surrender the weapons to the nearest police station.”
Asri said the main suspect was being investigated under Section 7(2) of the Firearms Act (Increased Penalty) 1971, which carries the death penalty or life imprisonment.