The pictures, published on The Sun daily's front page, were snapped on a mobile phone by Mr Ravi Poobalan. He is the cousin of Mr Thanarajah Kanagaratnam, whose wife N.Yogeswari was one of four people killed in the Dec6 landslide.

One picture shows a group of uniformed men standing outside what Mr Thanarajah says is his house. The other shows his clothes inexplicably hanging from a ledge outside the collapsed house.

An upset Mr Thanarajah, who was tipped off by a neighbour that a uniformed man had carted away a trolley bag from his house, wanted to know why his personal belongings had been rummaged through.

'What were these people doing in my house at 7pm when search and rescue operations were supposed to end at 6.30pm? How come my clothes were on hangers and put out to dry?' he asked.

His outcry is the latest in a series of accusations levelled at rescue workers by landslide victims.

The authorities have promised to look into the charges, and a committee comprising officials and residents has been set up to handle such complaints.

Stories of looting emerged on the day of the landslide itself, with residents claiming their possessions had disappeared from the wreckage of their homes.

The New Straits Times reported last week that it had been inundated with phone calls and e-mail messages from upset residents. One woman claimed she had seen people looting the site when she returned to recover her valuables.

The Chinese press ran several reports, with some of the strongest allegations coming from the family of accountant Ng Yee Peng, 30, who died in the landslide.

Her father-in-law, Mr Huang Yong- xun, 56, claims to have seen rescuers in orange uniforms lying on the bed in the master bedroom, smoking and drinking the family's liquor, when he returned to pick up valuables.

'They even asked me if I could give them anything I didn't want,' he told reporters.

He also claimed the family lost jewellery and six watches worth more than RM90,000 (S$37,000), and that his safe had been tampered with.

'After we left, only the rescuers came in. So who else could have taken our valuables? It's a pity we couldn't catch them red-handed by taking pictures of them in the act,' Mr Huang was quoted as saying. He has since filed a police report.

The pictures in The Sun newspaper yesterday, although suggestive, remain inconclusive, with none of the photos depicting rescue workers actually stealing.

Mr Thanarajah and Mr Ravi had deliberately kept their distance while observing the workers as they had hoped to catch them in the act, a source close to the family told The Straits Times.

Despite the swirling rumours, Selangor police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said only six reports have been made so far.

He has cautioned several times against rumour-mongers jumping to conclusions.

A man in military fatigues who was caught last week and thought to be a looter turned out to be an attache of the Myanmar embassy, helping to move the ambassador's belongings from his house in the area.

A group of soldiers was seen carting away items from a condominium unit, but the men were merely carrying out the orders of a general who owned the unit.

These rumours are causing unnecessary panic and making security work more difficult, said Datuk Khalid.

He could not be reached for comment on the latest allegations yesterday, but had previously vowed to address such issues.

'These reports relate to loss of items and damage of property. What needs to be investigated will be investigated,' he assured.

chengwee@sph.com.sg