KOTA KINABALU: What was meant to be a night of romance turned into a night in custody for several couples in Lahad Datu.
As the clock ticked past midnight on Valentine’s Day, whispers of love were replaced by the firm knocks of Islamic Religious Affairs officers conducting Op Valentine, a morality crackdown on budget hotels across town.
By dawn, four couples – young lovers and even a divorcee – found themselves behind police station doors, caught in the act of khalwat (close proximity).
Officials from the Sabah Islamic Religious Affairs Department Lahad Datu, as well as police, conducted the raids in several budget hotels.
Officer Mardi Ariffin said the operation was aimed at preventing unmarried people from committing close proximity, illicit relations and other related crimes.“We do not want Muslims to get involved in anything that goes against the teachings of Islam, such as anything close to or having anything to do with illicit sexual relations, be it behind closed doors or in public,” he said.
But for those arrested, it was a Valentine’s Day they won’t soon forget – one marked not by candlelight and roses, but by confiscated condoms and the looming threat of fines or jail time.
The couples, if convicted, can be fined up to RM2,000 or jailed up to a year, or both.
All suspects are now being held at the Lahad Datu police station for further action.
