Stolen valuables: Comm Hussein (second right) showing the items seized from the Rantau gang during the press conference at Selangor police headquarters. — KK SHAM/The Star
SHAH ALAM: Five Indonesians have been detained in connection with a spate of house break-ins in Selangor and Negri Sembilan.
The gang of four men and one woman was believed to be responsible for at least seven house break-in cases in Kajang, Sepang and Seremban, said Selangor police chief Comm Datuk Hussein Omar Khan.
He said the female suspect is believed to have been tasked with selling the stolen goods to pawnshops.
“They were responsible for seven cases including a house break-in in Kajang on Feb 24. We seized various items including mobile phones, cash of different denominations and jewellery,” he told reporters yesterday.
He said investigations revealed that the gang would operate late at night and would spend about 30 minutes ransacking each house.
“The suspects were armed with weapons including a machete. They would tie up their victims before stealing valuables including jewellery and cash,” he said.
Comm Hussein said while the accumulated losses from the house break-ins amounted to about RM55,000, the ordeal they inflicted on their victims was immeasurable.
“They threatened the victims at knifepoint before they tied them up. That alone would cause lasting trauma for the victims,” he added.
He said the suspects, aged between 39 and 49, were nabbed following a raid at a flat in Sungai Besi during a special operation codenamed Op Rantau on March 6.
“One of them tested positive for methamphetamine,” he said, adding that the suspects had been remanded for further investigation.
“We believe the gang entered Malaysia in November last year.”
Comm Hussein said the detention of the suspects would not have been possible without the cooperation of the public.
