| |
| >> Back to the article | |
| April 21, 2008 | |
|
Shoot-out in KL airport heist: Four arrested
|
|
| By Hazlin Hassan | |
| KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIAN police have arrested four suspects in connection with a S$1.5 million heist at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport which left five people injured after a dramatic shoot-out.
A source, meanwhile, said the police are also investigating a man employed by the two money changers who were robbed. Armed robbers ambushed the money changers and their security guard outside the airport departure hall in the holdup on April 9. Malaysian police chief Musa Hassan said yesterday that four suspects, who were found with firearms and part of the loot, were arrested in three separate raids on Friday in Johor. Tan Sri Musa said police confiscated cash worth RM779,622 (S$336,000) in Malaysian, Singapore and US currencies in the raids and seized five automatic pistols, as well as handcuffs and bullets. The four suspects are believed to have stayed overnight in a budget hotel in Sepang, where the airport is located, before fleeing to Johor, The Star newspaper said. In the April 9 incident, five people, including the two money changers and their security guard, were shot during the heist. A Nepalese bystander and an off-duty policeman were caught in the crossfire which lasted for five minutes before the armed robbers escaped with S$1.5 million in cash. Police have not ruled out the involvement of a staff member employed by the two money changers, the Bernama news agency said yesterday. 'Investigators want to know why four gunmen exercised extreme caution during the robbery and fired only at the legs and hands of the victims,' it quoted a source as saying. Some reports said the money was meant to be handed to two Singaporean businessmen, who are suspected of attempting to take the money to Singapore. Police are now trying to ascertain whether the transaction was legal and whether it had the approval of Bank Negara. The heist has highlighted the country's worsening crime situation and raised questions about airport security. All four suspects will be held in Kuala Lumpur for seven days to help in investigations. But Malaysian police are still looking for more culprits. 'We have a few more to go,' Selangor police chief Khalid Abu Bakar told The Straits Times without elaborating. | |
| Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved. Privacy Statement & Condition of Access |