KUALA TERENGGANU: Terengganu Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar has confirmed he is the man in a viral photo shown seated on a chair at an airport.
He also acknowledged that authorities briefly held him at Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) on his arrival and departure from the state on April 6 and 7, respectively.
The PAS vice president said that the image was captured by a member of the public who happened to be at the location as he was preparing to return to Peninsular Malaysia.
“My written statement, comprising 18 paragraphs and released on Thursday (April 10), was issued after the incident took place when I was temporarily held prior to departure to obtain clearance from the Special Branch.
“This occurred both upon arrival and departure. The photograph (which I believe was taken by a member of the public) was taken during my return on April 7,” he said briefly via WhatsApp on Sunday, as reported by Sinar Harian.
On Saturday, a photograph went viral on social media, showing Ahmad Samsuri seated on a chair in what appeared to be an airport area, believed to be at KKIA, Sabah.
According to the caption accompanying the image, Ahmad Samsuri was allegedly stopped by several officers upon arriving at the departure hall entrance before being taken aside for further checks.
Last Thursday, Ahmad Samsuri revealed that he had been labelled and marked as an individual under surveillance by the authorities since the middle of last year.
However, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain stressed that there is no need to place Ahmad Samsuri on the Special Circular List as he is not a criminal.
Razarudin also denied Ahmad Samsuri’s claim that he had been categorised as a high-risk individual despite having committed no proven offence.
