Penang: A serial snatch thief, who left a trail of injured victims in his spree of robberies around the Timur Laut district here, was finally arrested in Sitiawan, Perak on Oct 12.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Penang police chief Datuk Azizee Ismail stated that the 39-year-old man was apprehended by a team from the Special Crimes Division D9 of the Timur Laut district police headquarters during a raid on a house at 2 am. The police seized a motorcycle used by the suspect in his criminal activities. His modus operandi involved cruising on his motorcycle and targeting male bikers wearing gold chains.

The arrest is believed to have resolved 11 robbery cases in Penang and three in Kulim, Kedah. The suspect tested positive for drugs and has 14 prior records related to crimes and drugs. He has been remanded for 10 days for investigation under Section 394 of the Penal Code, which pertains to intentionally causing injury during a robbery.

In a separate development concerning the murder of a man whose body was found in a suitcase near the Ampang Jajar Flats in Permatang Pauh on Oct 9, Azizee clarified that the four suspects under investigation are local citizens. Two men and two women, aged 24 to 42, were arrested by a team from the Penang police contingent’s Serious Crimes Investigation Division (D9) in Butterworth and Kampar, Perak, following intelligence and surveillance activities.

Azizee advised the public against speculating on the case. Earlier reports from Bernama confirmed the arrest and remand of the four individuals for seven days, under investigation pursuant to Section 302 of the Penal Code. The suitcase victim was identified as Lee Boon Han, 31, who was reported missing by his family on Oct 8.