Police record statements from three actors over a 2018 theatre performance that went viral, allegedly mocking Rukun Negara. Probe under Sedition Act.
KUALA LUMPUR: Police have recorded statements from three actors involved in a theatre performance to assist investigations into a viral video allegedly mocking the principles of the Rukun Negara.
Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department (CID) director Datuk M. Kumar said the three, comprising two women and a man aged between 28 and 47, were detained in Selangor and Johor last Saturday.
He said the performance, which lasted about 10 minutes, was staged at the Penang Performing Arts Centre (PAC) in Penang in 2018.
“There were no police reports lodged when the performance took place in 2018, and the video did not go viral at the time. Therefore, no action was taken. However, the video has now gone viral,” he told reporters here today.
Kumar said preliminary investigations found that five actors were involved in the performance, with statements recorded from three, one confirmed to have died and another believed to be in the United Kingdom (UK), based on Immigration Department records.
He said the theatre director, a UK national, had also been confirmed to have left Malaysia and returned to his home country.
Kumar said the three detained individuals were released on police bail after their statements were recorded, while forensic examinations of their devices and social media accounts found no recordings of the performance.
He said police were tracing the Internet Protocol (IP) address to identify the person responsible for uploading the video.
Kumar added that the case was being investigated under Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, and would be referred to the Attorney General’s Chambers for further instructions.
Last Saturday, media reported that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) was investigating a video of a stage performance allegedly insulting the institution of the Malay Rulers and the Rukun Negara.
