JAINJ officers detain two couples for suspected khalwat during a Malaysia Day operation at a massage parlour in Masai, Johor.
A ROUTINE enforcement operation at a three-storey massage premises in Masai, Johor took an unexpected turn when religious officers discovered two couples in separate rooms that had been locked from the inside on Tuesday night.
The two couples were detained by the Johor Islamic Religious Affairs Department (JAINJ) during the raid, which was carried out at about 9.45pm in conjunction with the Malaysia Day holiday.
According to a report by Sinar Harian, the operation also involved 30 enforcement officers from the Pasir Gudang City Council (MBPG).
During the operation, JAINJ and MBPG officers inspected every floor of the three-storey premises before discovering two separate couples inside rooms that had been locked from the inside.
On the second floor, enforcement officers knocked on a locked room before it was opened about two minutes later by an Indonesian woman in her 20s who worked as a masseuse at the premises.
Further inspection found a man with her who was wearing only his underwear, while his clothes were found hanging on the wall.
The man, in his 20s, was believed to be married and had two children, while the woman said she was unmarried.
Meanwhile, on the third floor, enforcement officers knocked on another room that was also locked from the inside but received no response after about 10 minutes.
The door was subsequently opened using a duplicate key, where officers found a man and a woman inside.
The man, in his 30s, was single and worked in Pasir Gudang, while the woman, in her 20s, was also an Indonesian national working as a masseuse.
Checks found that both rooms were equipped with facilities including beds and toilets and were used to provide massage services in private.
Preliminary information also indicated that massage services were offered at RM260 for about an hour, with additional charges imposed for other services.
The two couples were detained on suspicion of committing khalwat, an offence under Section 27 of the Johor Syariah Criminal Offences Enactment.
