KEPALA BATAS, March 7 — Police are tracking down two Thai men, including an ustaz (religious teacher) at a madrasah in Tasek Gelugor, near here over alleged sexual assault involving five male students recently.
North Seberang Perai (SPU) district police chief ACP Noorzainy Mohd Noor said on Feb 27, 11 boys, aged nine to 15, were ordered to meet the two suspects at a house, located near the madrasah’s hostel, on pretext of attending the Quran reading class.
“Upon arriving at the suspects’ house, the students were split into two group, where five of them were asked to go to a room on the upper floor.
“According to the five students involved, once in the room, a man whom they referred at as ‘ustaz’ recited something to them before sexually assaulted them,” he told Bernama here today.
He said six other students who came to the house were not assaulted but ordered by another man to recite certain verses while he lit a joss stick before allowing all students to return to the hostel at 3am.
Noorzainy said the incident only came to light after two of the students confessed to a female teacher that they had sinned which prompted her to ask for more information.
Following the confession, during a meeting with the madrasah, five of the students claimed to have been sexually assaulted before they lodged police report while the so-called ‘ustaz’ and his accomplice had escaped after their heinous actions were discovered.
“The landlord has been detained to facilitate the probe, and police are now tracking down the two suspects, in their 30s, believed from southern Thailand to assist investigations,” he said.
Those with any information on the two suspects can contact the Tasek Gelugor police station at 04-573 1200 or the SPU district police headquarters operation room at 04-575 9122. — Bernama
