Police reject activist’s claim she was made to strip in lockup

 

Sentul police chief beh Eng Lai said a female lockup officer had attended to youth activist Sarah Irdina Mohamed Ariff. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: Police have rejected a youth activist’s claim of being made to strip to her underwear before entering her holding cell in the Jinjang central lockup on Thursday.

Sentul district police chief Beh Eng Lai said proper procedures had been followed, and activist Sarah Irdina Mohamad Ariff had changed into the lockup clothes in a special room and could not be seen by anyone.

Beh said all lockup procedures were observed throughout Sarah’s arrest and the process of placing Sarah in the central lockup in Jinjang on July 29.

Prior to entering the cell, Beh said each detainee would be brought into a room for examination by a lockup staff. In Sarah’s case, it was a female lockup officer, he added.

He said this was to ensure the detainee had no physical injuries and that no “wrongful items” were brought into the cell.

“Next, she changed into the purple lockup uniform. The process of changing clothes was carried out in a special room and cannot be seen by anyone else,” said Beh.

He added that only women staff and detainees were allowed into the lockup cell. “Male staff or detainees are not allowed to pass by or enter the area.”

Beh said Sarah was released on police bail at 12.30am on July 30.”

Police had arrested Sarah, 20, at around 7pm under the Sedition Act for a tweet she posted on July 1, which called for people to support the #Lawan protest.

This is done by displaying a black flag if they agree with their demands for the prime minister to resign, the reconvening of Parliament, and the ending of the Emergency.

Sarah, the founder of youth-based group Misi Solidariti, was released from police custody at about 1am the next day after being questioned for 10 hours over allegations of sedition and improper use of network facilities.

The activist claimed the police had used intimidation tactics on her and her family, raided her room to search for devices that could link her to the tweet under investigation and forced her to strip down to her underwear before she entered the holding cell. - FMT