IGP: More Malays than Indians arrested under Ops Cantas

(The Star) – Police have arrested over 15,000 Malays as compared to only 3,000 Indian suspects under Ops Cantas so far, said Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar.

He was responding to questions from reporters over claims that the force was racial profiling criminals and only targeting a specific race in their crackdown operations.

“I’ve heard these slanderous comments. ‘Police are racists.’ ‘Only targeting one race’. This is not true.

“For your information, under Ops Cantas, most people that we have arrested are Malays.

We have arrested 15,000 Malays while only 3,000 Indians have been arrested. How is that racist?” Khalid said on Saturday.

On the recent shootout that killed two Indian men who are alleged gang members in Malacca on Sept 12, Khalid said the officers involved acted appropriately.

“Johor police had issued photos of the two suspects saying they were wanted and that they were violent and armed. 

“We managed to track them down in Malacca based on people’s information and when we wanted to make arrests, they opened fire.

“If they act violently against us, what choice do we have?  Were people expecting us to ‘berpantun’ with them?” he said.

He affirmed that race was not a factor when it came to apprehending criminals, saying “I don’t care if you are Indian or Chinese or Malay. If you are on the wrong side of the law, you will be prosecuted.” he said.