KUCHING: Police have rounded up a dozen male suspects including a foreign worker, believed to be involved in stealing building materials, during a two-day operation.
Kuching district acting police chief, Supt Merbin Lisa said they were arrested during ‘Op Lusuh’ held on Feb 19 and 20.
“The suspects aged between 26 and 38 years are believed to have stolen building materials at Jalan Diplomatik here.
“The suspects intruded into the construction site when there were no security guards on duty,” he said in a statement.
Among the items seized from the suspects included three motorcycles, pipe cutters, saws, battery boxes, aluminum window frames and oxygen gas head brass.
Merbin said investigations into the motorcycles seized from the suspects revealed that one of the motorcycles was reported stolen in Batu Kawah.
All the suspects are currently remanded while, the foreign worker was detained under the Immigration Act.
The case is being investigated under Section 380 of the Penal Code and if found guilty, offenders may be subject to an imprisonment of up to 10 years, and a fine or whipping.
On a related issue, Merbin urged all second-hand goods merchants to be cautious when dealing with purchases of shabby goods and to avoid buying suspicious and suspected stolen items
