Penang police successfully apprehended a car thief who had driven off with a five-year-old boy from Kampung Banggol Mosque, located in Pokok Sena, Tasek Gelugor. The incident occurred at 8 pm last night, and the suspect was captured seven hours later in Selangor on the North-South Expressway.
Penang police chief Datuk Hamzah Ahmad detailed that the father of the child, who has special needs, had momentarily left his Honda BRV with the engine running in the mosque’s parking area while attending to his one-year-old daughter. During this brief absence, a thief seized the opportunity to steal the vehicle with the boy inside. Despite the father’s attempt to pursue the vehicle, he was unable to catch up.
At approximately 3.45 am, the Criminal Investigation Department team from Penang police headquarters located the stolen car at a petrol station in the Behrang R&R area on the North-South Expressway. The suspect was discovered asleep in the vehicle, which still had the engine running, around 260 km from where the theft took place.
Upon being asked to open the door, the suspect endeavoured to flee by reversing the car but instead collided with a police vehicle parked behind him. Police then broke the car window, overcame the suspect who resisted arrest, and safely rescued the unharmed boy.
The suspect, identified as a 36-year-old local man, has a criminal record comprising 10 drug-related offences, two of which are pending, along with five other criminal cases. He is currently under remand until April 3 for further investigation under Section 379A and Section 363 of the Penal Code.
Hamzah has urged the public to learn from this incident and not to leave young children unattended in running vehicles.
