M'sian teens prey on passers-by for money and valuables

YIP YOKE TENG
Fri, Nov 23, 2007
The Star

A NEW breed of troublemakers has emerged in several parts of Bukit Bintang lately.



They loiter around from sundown and disperse only when the city awakes again in the morning. They are often high on glue and think nothing of harassing or even robbing passers-by of their money and valuables.

The worse part is that these street terrors are teenagers, some of whom are still in their early teens.

It has been observed that most of these teenage terrors loiter around the open car park at Changkat Thambi Dollah (opposite the Pudu Jail). They are also seen roaming the back lanes near the Berjaya Times Square.

According to shopowners in the area, about 300 of these teenage boys and girls assemble there every Saturday. They say that judging from the youngsters' small build, they could even be primary school pupils.

They would start to gather at about 6pm, some sitting on the kerbs while others would perch themselves on vehicles parked there. Others would started revving their motorcycles to attract attention. The gathering would usually peak at about 8pm. This phenomenon is said to have started several months ago.

A shopowner in the area said the teens would drop by his shop asking for plastic bags which they would use for glue-sniffing. Many carry rods and penknives.

"We've had innocent boys running into our shops to hide with their shirts soaked in blood after they had been beaten up and their belongings snatched by the glue-sniffing teens.

"They would casually come in to sit and eat at my shop after beating up people, not at all worried that the police might nab them.

"They have also harassed my customers, thrown glass bottles into my shop and some of the girls have even stripped in public!" he said.

He said shopowners in the area believed that syndicates gathered the teenagers there every week.

"There are often hundreds of youngsters and they would have about 50 motorcycles between them. We believe syndicates are encouraging these kids to snatch mobile phones and then help them to sell off the devices for RM30 to RM50 a piece. We are now a bundle of nerves. We are scared to operate businesses here.

"I have been doing business here for 26 years and I've never encountered incidents like this before," he added.

Another shop operator said the matter had been brought to the attention of the authorities but the measures taken have yielded no results.

He said the police and the Kuala Lumpur City Hall had sent their officers there but the teenagers would disperse immediately and gather once again after the officers had left.

"The police once captured some of the teenagers and discovered that many of them were from other states, mainly Terengganu, Kelantan and Perak."

"One of their best tricks is to pass the stolen items among themselves so that the police would not find any evidence of the crime on them," he added.

Bukit Bintang MCA division chairman Datuk Dr Lee Chong Ming said he would organise a dialogue involving the police, City Hall, Selangor Islamic Religious Affairs Department (JAIS), NGOs, residents and shopowners to find a solution for the issue.

"Parents have also complained to me that their teenage daughters have gone missing. They are likely to have joined this group," he said.

"This issue has to be dealt with carefully as we are also worried that it may cause racial misunderstanding," he said.

Dr Lee also said that apart from Changkat Thambi Dollah, teenagers dressed in punk attire were often seen loitering around Dataran Maybank, Jalan Bukit Bintang, harassing tourists, extorting money and even foraging for scraps in litter bins.

He said another group of teenagers was found hanging out at the dimly lit garden adjacent to Menara Maybank in Jalan Pudu.

Lee said that these youngsters were often high on drugs.

"I believe many of these children are from rich families as the punk attire and hairdos are not cheap. Parents should really keep a closer watch on their children," he said.

City police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Zul Hasnan Najib Baharudin, when contacted, confirmed that police reports had been lodged and that the police had arrested 41 teenagers from the group.

"The police are doing everything we can, such as patrols, to deter the teenagers from gathering there and harming civilians," he said.

City Narcotic Chief Asst Comm Kang Chez Chiang said the large-scale operation that arrested the 41 teenagers from the group gathering at Changkat Thambi Dollah was conducted in September, and was a joint effort between his department and City CID headed by Senior Asst Comm II Ku Chin Wah.

"The ones arrested were slapped with strong warning and minor charges. We believe they have made a comeback; the police will do its part to prevent them from harassing and harming ordinary citizens," he added.