Novelist, son slashed in attempted robbery

SEREMBAN: A novelist and his son were injured when they were slashed during an attempted robbery at their house in Taman Lavender Heights, Paroi on Sunday.

Seremban district deputy police chief Abdul Rahim Daud said Ahmad Patria Abdullah, 48, the son of national laureate Datuk Abdullah Hussain, was watching television when three men armed with parang broke into his house at about 5.15am.

"Upon realising the presence of the suspects, Ahmad Patria tried to chase them away and shouted for his wife to call the police but a scuffle ensued.

"The victim's son Abdullah Hasif, 16, was awoken by the noise and rushed in to help his father. The victims were however, slashed with parang causing them to sustain injuries to their head and hands," he said in a statement on Sunday.

Abdul Rahim said the suspects fled the scene when the victim's wife, who was in a room on the upper level of the house with their two children, aged six and 10, activated the house alarm before calling the police.

He said initial investigations revealed that the three suspects broke into the house by cutting through the grill of a window. – Bernama