Four Singaporeans are among the 18 people being investigated by Malaysian police after a video of them frolicking naked on a Penang beach went viral.
Malaysian daily newspaper The Star yesterday reported how the nudists had allegedly held a "Penang Nude Sports Games 2014" event on May 30.
They filmed themselves painting each other's bodies, dancing and rolling over one another.
According to the 5.5 minute video, the event was organised by Ms Chew Tok Hwa, a Malaysian. The footage ends with a promise to hold a similar event next year.
When contacted, the Penang police declined to reveal the names of the Singaporeans involved.
But one of them is believed to be Mr Albert Yam Kam Hoong, who moderates a Yahoo online group for local nudists. The Star also reported that a copy of the video had been previously posted by a user called "Albert", and was shared over 260 times on Facebook. It has since been taken down.
Mr Yam could not be reached for comment yesterday.
A participant of the event, Mr Marvin Cuevas from Philippines, wrote about his experience on nudist forum International Young Naturists Organisation two months ago, and provided a list of those attending. Mr Yam's name was among those listed.
In a press conference on Tuesday, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the authorities had no knowledge of the nudist event, adding that the state did not condone such behaviour.
The nudists are being investigated under Section 509 of Malaysia's penal code, which entails committing a gesture intended to insult the modesty of a person. The prescribed punishment is a jail term of up to five years, a fine or both, said Malaysian police.
According to lawyer Tan Hee Joek, the Malaysian authorities can request the assistance of their local counterparts here to extradite alleged Singaporean offenders who may be punishable for six months or more under Malaysian law, he said.
