Tahfiz school arson teen suspects to be charged tomorrow

Six teenagers arrested over a fire at a tahfiz school, which killed 23, will be charged tomorrow.

According to Kuala Lumpur police chief Amar Singh, two of the accused would be charged with murder, under Section 302 of the Penal Code.

The other four suspects would be charged under Section 15(1) of the Dangerous Drugs Act.

The police arrested seven teenagers, aged between 11 and 18, in connection with the Sept 14 fire in Kuala Lumpur.

Police investigations revealed that the fire could have been the result of a misunderstanding between the students and the suspects, who were said to have been mocking each other.

Meanwhile, deputy inspector-general of police Noor Rashid Ibrahim said that investigations showed that only some of the seven arrested were directly involved in starting the fire at the tahfiz school.

“Some were not actively involved...for example, they were at the scene of the tragedy or were present during the discussions (on the arson attack on the religious school).

“However, we will ensure appropriate action will be taken against those who were not actively involved in accordance with other sections of the law, such as drug offences or others,” he said in a press conference at the Bukit Aman police headquarters today.

The police are also trying their best to gather more evidence and new leads to strengthen the prosecution’s case, he added, as well as investigating how details and information related to the probe were leaked to the public.

“We’re still investigating how that information leaked out. I think we need to build up awareness among our officers because (such leakage) impedes our investigation process,” he said.

The fire occurred at 5.15am at the Darul Quran Ittifaqiyah tahfiz school in Kuala Lumpur on Sept 14 and resulted in the deaths of 21 students and two teachers who were trapped on the top floor of the three-storey building.- Mkini