THERE are many ways to get caught stealing, but being filmed doing it and having the footage go viral is arguably the most spectacular.
A CCTV recording showing a group of men stripping cables in the early hours in Shah Alam made the rounds online, and Malaysians watching it had one question on their minds.
Were these cable thieves actually caught?
Verdict:
TRUE
Police dismantled a cable theft syndicate after arresting six individuals following the circulation of the viral footage.
The operation was carried out by the Criminal Investigation Division D4 of the Shah Alam District Police Headquarters, in collaboration with the Crime Prevention Branch of the Section 9 Police Station and the Criminal Investigation Department of the Selangor Police Contingent Headquarters.
Shah Alam district police chief Assistant Commissioner Ramsay Embol said the operation, conducted across the Klang Valley between May 4 and 9, resulted in the arrest of six local men aged between 26 and 40.
Checks revealed that each of the suspects had between seven and 31 previous criminal and drug-related records.
Urine tests also found that four of the suspects tested positive for amphetamine and methamphetamine.
The arrests followed the circulation of a viral CCTV recording showing a group of men suspected of stealing cables in Section 2, Shah Alam, with the incident believed to have taken place in the early hours of May 2.
The operation also resulted in the seizure of a pickup truck, tools used by the suspects during the theft and three rolls of cables belonging to Telekom Malaysia.
"This operation has allowed police to resolve several cable theft cases in Selangor with the arrest of this criminal group," Ramsay said in a statement on Sunday (May 10).
He added that investigations were ongoing and the case was being investigated under Section 379 of the Penal Code and Section 235 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.
Members of the public with further information were urged to contact Shah Alam District Police Headquarters criminal investigating officer Inspector Mohammad Amirul Zulkifli at 012-5583436.
Ramsay also called on the public to promptly report any suspicious individuals spotted in their residential areas to help maintain the safety and wellbeing of local communities.
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