Band of youths terrorising residents
Self-proclaimed gangsters vandalise wall after being kept out of school field
SITIAWAN: Hooligans, who have sprayed a school wall here with the Gang 04 symbol, are giving some residents sleepless nights with their antics.
“These boys know they can’t do anything during school hours. So they are up to no good after 2pm right till past midnight,” said a staff member of SJK (T) Ladang Sungai Wangi.
Recently, two walls that secured the school field were painted with gang symbols.
It is believed that this was done by youths who were unhappy that they were prevented from using the field as their “playground”.
The school employee, who declined to be named, said these youngsters, allegedly gang members, had previously frequented the field at night to drink and party with their friends, before the walls were built.
“When the walls were erected, the boys hurled profanities at school officials. They felt that we had trampled on their ‘territory’,” said the official.
These youths would throw beer bottles into the school field in the past.
“This has been happening for many years. Areas such as Ladang Sungai Wangi, Kampung Deralik and Taman Nesa are known for problems like gangsterism, drugs and alcohol abuse,” he said, adding that the police would come by but the culprits managed to escape.
The school is expected to make a police report today.
A resident, who did not want to be named, said some boys would sit at a junction near his house and party all night with loud music switched on.
“Once, they beat up a man for questioning their antics,” said the resident who lives in Kg Deralik.
He also claimed that a sundry shop there was selling cheap liquor to the youths.
A village headman said he had advised many of these boys but “they want to show their power.”
“This is a long-standing problem. Police have arrested some of these boys several times. I have helped their families bail them out. Some of them have changed but the rest remain stubborn,” he said.
“I know there were some robbery cases in Taman Nesa and Ladang Sungai Wangi but the residents did not report to the police because they are afraid things could worsen,” he said.
Manjung OCPD Asst Comm Tengku Mohd Zailan Tengku Ahmad urged the residents to come forward and report such disturbances to them.
“Once a report has been made, we will follow up on the matter and take action,” he said when contacted.