‘Raja Bomoh’ to stop his antics
Self-styled shaman says he has repented and apologises for rituals
PETALING JAYA: Self-styled shaman Ibrahim Mat Zin has promised not to conduct his bizarre rituals anymore, saying that he has repented.
In apologising for his antics that many say mocks Islam, Ibrahim, who is in his 80s, claimed that he was instructed by “someone” to conduct the rituals, although he did not name the person.
“I slept at the Dang Wangi lock-up for two days and in Jinjang for three days. I have repented, I promise that I will stop all these rituals,” he said at a press conference organised by Federal Territory Islamic Religious Department (Jawi) yesterday.
He also renounced his Raja Bomoh title.
“All of it was drama, the shaking of the bamboo sticks. I couldn’t see anything inside it. I was told to shake the sticks. I took the coconuts as if they were bombs. I didn’t know what I did was wrong,” he said.
Jawi director Hj Abd Aziz bin Jusoh said Ibrahim was found guilty by the Kuala Lumpur Syariah Court yesterday for insulting Islam and causing people to have a negative perception of the religion.
Abd Aziz said Ibrahim was investigated for conducting a ritual in Jalan Pekeliling, Kuala Lumpur purpotedly to create rain during the El-Nino season in March last year.
Ibrahim pleaded guilty to the charges.
Abd Aziz said that in consideration of Ibrahim’s age and health, he was released on a good behaviour bond for six months and is to be monitored by the Federal Territory Mufti’s office.
Ibrahim first made headlines in March 2014, when he conducted two rituals at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in a supposed attempt to locate the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.
In March, he performed a ritual outside the National Institute of Forensic Medicine at Hospital Kuala Lumpur over the assassination of Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
He also performed a ritual using coconuts and sticks on a beach in Bagan Lalang, purportedly to “defend” Malaysia from North Korea.