Compiled by C.ARUNO, OON JUN-YANG and R. ARAVINTHAN
A MAN who was arrested for conning an elderly woman in Bentong, Pahang, last year was found to be running similar scams in other parts of the country, reported Sin Chew Daily.
According to police sources, the man and an associate visited the 72-year-old woman’s home last September and convinced her to follow them to Rawang, Selangor, by posing as welfare staff.
The two men then drove her to multiple banks in Rawang to withdraw RM40,000 before abandoning her by the roadside.
Police arrested one of the suspects on Monday and discovered that he was also linked to an earlier case in Gombak, Selangor.
He had allegedly convinced a retired hawker, 73, that she was eligible to receive a government grant meant for senior citizens, and convinced her to withdraw RM100,000 from her bank account.
Upon his arrest, police discovered that the suspect had seven prior criminal convictions and was also a wanted person.
Police are investigating the case under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.
The suspect is expected to be charged soon.
> A micro drama production crew in China and the parents of a baby were criticised for subjecting the infant to prolonged heavy rain just to shoot an episode, reported China Press.
An actress in the micro drama series Xing Yun made the startling revelation on Jan 17, accusing the production team of child abuse.
Footage shared online showed what appears to be a one-year-old infant strapped to the back of an actress standing in heavy rain.
“The child was drenched for a long time and was crying hysterically,” she wrote.
Footage showed the wet infant shivering, likely due to the cold.
It broke the hearts of many netizens and triggered a backlash against the production crew and the infant’s parents.
Some pointed out that prolonged exposure to rain could lead to serious illnesses like pneumonia for infants, with others urging the police to investigate the case for child abuse.
The infant’s parents were reportedly paid 800 yuan (RM466) for the role.
As of press time, the production crew had yet to respond to the allegations.
Micro dramas are short video series with episodes lasting between one and three minutes.
It gained popularity on short-form content platforms such as Douyin in 2020 and is one of the fastest-growing entertainment formats in China, having recorded 50bil yuan (RM29bil) in revenue in 2024.
Today, the micro drama industry has adopted the model of completing the filming of 100 episodes in seven days to cut costs, which is said to have led to the neglect of the health and right to proper rest of actors, especially child actors.
(The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.)
