Temple riot: Cops arrive in 10 minutes, 17 arrested
SHAH ALAM: The police have denied that they responded slowly to the riots at the Seafield Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in USJ, Subang Jaya.
“The police were informed of the incident at 2.40am and a team was already at the scene at 2.50am. The district police chief arrived there 30 minutes later,” said Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun.
“We have the sequence of events in our diary.
“If we had not acted quickly, there could have been a possibility of a death during the riots,” he said during a press conference on the matter at the Selangor police headquarters last night.
Back up was called by the ground team, and 700 more policemen arrived to help control the situation.
The IGP called for all parties, including NGOs and politicians, not to fan racial sentiments.
“I hope these irresponsible parties stop creating speculation. They do not know the real situation.
“All parties should help pacify the situation, not make it worse. We will act strictly on those responsible for this incident,” he said, adding that 29 police reports had been made regarding the incident.
The IGP called on the public to ignore messages and videos that could spark racial tension.
He revealed that as of 9.30pm, 17 suspects have been arrested, all of whom are locals.
“One police corporal from the Subang Jaya police district was injured while trying to pacify the situation. He suffered a broken hand,” he added.
The IGP said that the police would investigate all aspects of the case, including allegations that a developer had send a group of people to force them (the people at the temple) out .
However, he noted that it was too early to tell if they had any involvement at this point of time.
Nevertheless, he said that the police have identified all parties responsible for the riots.
Action, including the recording of statements, will be conducted in the near future.
Police investigations showed that the efforts to relocate the temple to a nearby location in Putra Heights had been ongoing, with three tries already this year.
The temple will be monitored 24 hours a day for the time being.
On the crowd that had gathered at the temple last night, the IGP advised them to disperse peacefully.