KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 20 — Police have opened an investigation into the circulation of a podcast video alleging that drug trafficking activities were taking place at a house of worship near the Sentul District Police Headquarters (IPD) here.

Sentul district police chief ACP Anuar Bakri Abdul Salam said the investigation was being conducted under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.

He said the investigation was initiated following a police report lodged by the chairman of the Marathadi Madurai Veeran Temple in Kuala Lumpur last Sunday to strongly deny the allegations made in the video.

“After receiving the Order to Investigate (OTI) from the Deputy Public Prosecutor, police have called several witnesses to assist in completing the investigation,” he said in a statement today.

He said the podcast guest, Azrul Affandi Sobry, will appear at the Sentul IPD at noon tomorrow to have his statement recorded.

Kuala Lumpur police chief Datuk Fadil Marsus was previously reported as saying that the allegations raised in the video posted on the @Sembangohhyeahh TikTok account actually referred to an incident that occurred 10 years ago.

He said checks found that the incident took place on July 12, 2016, and that the podcast content was merely a retelling of the guest’s experience while monitoring the situation as a journalist at the time.

Fadil also stressed that such publicity was inappropriate as it could create negative public perceptions of the level of integrity of police, and advised all parties to be more responsible when disseminating information. — Bernama