18 theSun
News that
gripped
the nation
by Charles Ramendran
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
CRIME and disasters received
the lion’s share of media
attention for 2008.
Just when the nation was
recovering from the shocking
news of Nurin Jazlin Jazimin,
eight, who was found sadistically
raped and murdered almost a
month after she was abducted on
Aug 20, 2007 at Wangsa Maju, a
similar case involving another
girl signalled a bad start to the
year on the crime front.
Sharlinie Mohd Nashar, six,
went missing from her home off
Old Klang Road on Jan 10. Police
embarked on a massive search
for her but have yet to make any
headway in the case.
Sharlinie is believed to have
fallen victim to “Kampung Baru
molestor”, the
man who
abducted
Nurin.
» On Jan 11,
Tenggaroh
state
assemblyman
Datuk S.
Krishnasamy
(pix) was shot
dead by a lone
gunman outside
the state MIC
building in Johor.
His killer remains
at large.
» The drug
pipeline into the
country was severely cut when
police seized RM48 million worth
of drugs and RM1.1 million cash
with the arrest of 12 members
of a syndicate, including three
Singaporeans and a Thai, in Johor
Baru on March 31.
» Airports became the focus of
serious crimes when on April 9,
six gun-toting robbers grabbed
S$1.5 million (RM3.5 million)
from two money-changers in a
dramatic three-minute heist at
the KL International Airport after
engaging in a shootout with two
bodyguards of the victims and an
off-duty policeman.
All five and a Nepali bystander
caught in the crossfire escaped
death, but were seriously injured.
In a similar case on Aug 27,
two men armed with automatic
pistols shot and injured a
money-changer at the Penang
International Airport but failed to
relieve him of the RM1.9 million
he was carrying in a suitcase.
Less than a month later, on
Sept 23, at the same airport, three
gunmen robbed two goldsmiths
and escaped with gold bars worth
RM850,000.
Following the incidents, police
took over security control at all
international airports.
» Criminals also “ventured” into
a new way of making a fast buck.
In three cases in Shah Alam and
Puchong, they used explosives
made from fireworks to blow up
automated teller machines (ATM).
| TUESDAY DECEMBER 23 2008
Although the explosions
damaged the ATMs, the thieves
failed to remove any cash except in
one case where they escaped with
about RM30,000.
On the whole, police scored
successes when they busted
several criminal gangs, gunning
down at least two dozen hardcore
criminals and arresting tens of
others.
» Among the criminals who
perished was a 20-year-old female
car thief, who had a string of
criminal records mainly for theft
and firearms possession.
Described as a hardcore
criminal, she and her 40-year-old
male accomplice were shot dead
after they opened fire at police
during a raid at a condominium
unit in Sungai Long, Kajang on Nov
7. A police inspector
was also injured in
the shootout.
» The year also
saw dozens of
street protests and
rallies from both
the ruling and
opposition parties,
mostly after the
March general
election.
This led
to dozens of
supporters and
politicians being
detained for
defying police
orders. Among
the non-political protests
which drew attention was that by
residents of Bandar Mahkota, Kajang
who objected to the closure of an
access road into their housing estate
by a highway concessionaire. The
year-long “revolt” which peaked in
May led to many protesters getting
injured but the persistent residents
eventually triumphed when the
highway concessionaire gave in to
their demands.
» On June 28, the country saw
an uproar when Pakatan Rakyat
leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim
was accused of sodomy by his
former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari
Azlan. Anwar was arrested by
police on July 16 and charged in
court weeks later.
» Controversial blogger and
webmaster of Malaysia-today.
com, Raja Petra Kamarudin, was
detained under the Internal Security
Act on Sept 12 and was held at the
Kamunting detention centre for
almost two month before being
freed.
» The wet weather wreaked
havoc towards the end of the
year. The worst case was when
a massive landslide took place
at the affluent hillside residential
estate of Bukit Antarabangsa on
Dec 6. Four people were killed
after 14 bungalows were buried or
badly damaged.
» On Nov 30, two sisters were
killed in another landslide which
destroyed their house in Ulu Yam.
Next: Battle against graft