Two suspects in fake kidnapping case remanded 14 days

A woman and a man are remanded for 14 days after she allegedly staged her own kidnapping to demand RM18,000 ransom from her mother in Sarawak.

KUALA LUMPUR: Two individuals, including a woman believed to have staged her own kidnapping to obtain RM18,000 in ransom money, have been remanded for 14 days beginning today to assist in investigations.

Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk M. Kumar said the remand order was obtained from the Johor Bahru Magistrate’s Court in Johor today.

“The two individuals will be brought to Sarawak to facilitate the completion of investigations, and the case is being investigated under Section 3(1) of the Kidnapping Act 1961 for kidnapping for ransom,” he said when contacted here today.

In a statement yesterday, Kumar said the woman, who is in her 20s, was arrested after being found safe during an Ops Scorpion raid at a house in Taman Perniagaan Setia, Johor Bahru, at about 3.30 pm.

He said the operation was launched following a report lodged by the woman’s 43-year-old mother at the Padawan district police headquarters in Sarawak on Friday, claiming that her daughter had been abducted by unknown individuals.

During the raid, police also arrested a 27-year-old man with three previous records involving drug-related and criminal offences, and seized four mobile phones.

However, he said preliminary investigations revealed inconsistencies in the alleged victim’s account of the kidnapping, leading to her arrest to assist in investigations.