Week-long remand extension for 7 suspects

KUALA LUMPUR: Police have obtained a seven-day remand extension against seven boys who allegedly torched the Darul Quran Ittifaqiyah religious school in Kampung Datuk Keramat here last Thursday.

The extension request was made by investigators, who needed more time to question the suspects and complete the arsoncum-murder investigation of the blaze, which claimed the lives of 21 students and two teachers of the school.

Wangsa Maju police chief Superintendent Mohamad Roy Suhaimi Sarif confirmed that the extension began today.

“The seven suspects’ remand order expired today (yesterday), so police requested an extension of another week, until Sept 29, to facilitate investigations.”

Last Tuesday, police brought the suspects, including an 11year-old, to the scene of the fire.

It was reported that a namecalling incident between a few of the religious school students and the suspects had sparked the act of revenge.

Six of the seven suspects tested positive for drugs at the time of their arrest. It is believed that the group had been high when they carried out the act.

The suspects, aged between 11 and 18, several of whom are school dropouts, were picked up at several locations in the Datuk Keramat area between 6.30pm last Friday and 2.30am last Saturday.

They were picked up after one of them was seen on a closedcircuit television footage entering the religious school on the night of the fire.