Temerloh cops deny alleged kidnapping case, call it 'misunderstanding'

Temerloh police have denied news of an alleged kidnapping at a residential area in Mentakab, Pahang, dubbing it a "misunderstanding".

District police chief Azhar Yusoff said the netizen who spread the news on her Facebook yesterday has also apologised over the incident.

"About 8am yesterday, the Temerloh police detected a post by a Facebook user named 'Aisyah Eca' which claimed that there was a kidnapping attempt in the district.

"The woman had witnessed a heavily tinted car parked near her house and misconstrued it as a kidnapper's vehicle.

“Investigations revealed that the vehicle's owner was actually in the area to change the neighbour's gas stove," Azhar said in a statement, adding that the case was a misunderstanding.

In her apology, the Facebook account holder clarified that no kidnapping attempt had taken place.

Azhar further warned that the police take the spread of fake news seriously.

"The offence is punishable under Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1988, and can also be probed under Section 505 (b) of the Penal Code for causing public alarm.

"We urge the public to always check the veracity of any news before spreading it on social media."

It is worth noting that of late, there have been unverified reports of attempted kidnapping, especially of schoolchildren across several states, circulating on social media.

The police have denied such reports.

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