IPOH, June 25 — Beginner’s luck did not rub off on two friends who were arrested by police less than a month after robbing a businessman of nearly RM500,000 at Pasir Puteh here.

District police chief Assistant Commissioner Mohd Ali Tamby said the suspects had robbed the victim at his home on June 3 at 5.25am and carted away RM61,500 in cash, jewellery worth RM70,000, 10 bottles of liquor, two iPhones, besides driving away the victim’s Toyota Lexus.

“The suspects, aged 45 and 39, were arrested at a condominium in Pasir Puteh on Saturday afternoon. Aside from the items stolen from the victim, police also recovered a pistol with 14 bullets.

“The 39-year-old suspect has admitted to paying RM7,000 for the pistol from Thailand weeks before the robbery,” he said.

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Initial investigations found the 45-year-old suspect, who works as a delivery man, has five previous records, while the 39-year-old suspect, a trader, has one record.

“We believe the duo only started to dabble in robbery and the businessman was their first victim,” he said.

The duo’s urine tested positive for methamphetamine and had been remanded until Friday.

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On a separate case, Mohd Ali said Ipoh police have arrested 131 people from 68 operations since early this year for illegal gambling.

“Last year, we arrested 231 people from 101 operations for illegal gambling,” he said.

They were arrested for illegal lottery, horse racing, and gambling.