Police deny Penang incident involved insults to Prophet Muhammad

(FMT) – Police are looking for three men suspected of spreading fake news on the killing of a woman by a factory worker who ran amok in Penang.

Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department deputy director (prosecution and legal) Mior Farid Al Athrash (pic) -said they have identified the suspects, two of whom are in Kedah. The other is in Penang.

“Many inciting statements have been made,” he said in a press conference here today.

“We have carried out investigations and identified three suspects aged 35 to 40. They uploaded statements on Facebook and WhatsApp which went viral.”

Police had earlier described the incident, which saw the factory worker shot dead by police, as an isolated case. They said it had not involved any extremist groups or individuals.

Mior said the 25-year-old man who ran amok had been influenced by videos from the Middle East, and denied that the victim, a 47-year-old woman, had insulted Prophet Muhammad.

Yesterday, Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador said the cops would not hesitate to act against those who spread fake news on the case as it could cause racial tension.