All 29 individuals including Selangor assemblyperson Bryan Lai were released on police bail early today after they were detained yesterday for allegedly entering the Ulu Jelai Forest Reserve in Lipis illegally.
According to Bernama, Lipis district police chief Azli Mohd Noor verified that the 29 individuals were released on police bail at around 3am today after recording their statements.
“The police investigation was carried out over the offence of crossing state borders without permission while the Pahang Forestry Department (JPNP) investigated the allegations of entering forest reserves without permission,” he was quoted saying.
Yesterday, the Pahang forestry department confirmed that all the suspects’ addresses were in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor and they entered the forest reserve without permission last Saturday (July 17) by using 11 four-wheel-drive vehicles.
They were arrested at 8am in Kampung Rakoh, Pos Lenjang, said the Pahang forestry department.
Inspections by the JPNP and the Disaster Operations Control Centre found that no approval had been issued for the individuals to deliver aid, even though that was the reason given for their cross-border travel.
Tyres punctured
Yesterday, Lai said that he and the team were there to distribute aids and supplies for the Orang Asli community in Lipis.
He told Oriental Daily that all the 29 individuals have tested negative for Covid-19 on July 14 before departure.
Lai admitted that they do not have any permission to do so but were allowed to enter by the forestry department officers at a roadblock after a local indigenous leader explained their purpose.
He added that they finished distributing aid on July 17 evening but found out that two of the eleven vehicles had a flat tyre. They then decided to camp overnight and were discovered by the police and forest department at midnight.
“I told them about the puncture and asked the officials to accommodate by allowing us to stay there for one night, and we promised to report to the police district office in the next morning.
“Around 8am in the next morning, some enforcement officers came again to help replace the tyres. We then packed our things under their monitoring.”
Lai added that he was informed by the police that they will not issue any summons as they understand that sending aid to the indigenous community was done with good intentions. As for whether the forestry department will file any charges, he replied that he will fully cooperate with the authorities. - Mkini
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