Summary

  • IGP Razarudin Husain clarifies that police personnel would not conduct random mobile phone checks on people in public.

  • Razarudin maintains inspections will only be done based on reasonable suspicion.

Amid growing concerns on police authority to inspect mobile phones, the inspector-general of police has clarified that his officers would not conduct random mobile phone checks on people in public.

Razarudin Husain reiterated police personnel will only inspect when there is reasonable suspicion.

"The key point to understand is that we will only inspect the mobile phones of individuals under reasonable suspicion.

"This means there must be credible information, intelligence, or reasonable suspicion suggesting that an individual has committed an offence or crime, placing them under suspicion," he was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times.

Razarudin gave his assurance that his officers would not conduct random checks and that they would act in accordance with the law and constitutional provisions.

The IGP’s remarks came on the heels of Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail’s denial police have the authority to check the phones of any person without a valid reason.

Saifuddin said that he police cannot be seen as an enforcement agency that acts outside the law.

Suhakam, meanwhile, urged the public to send in complaints if they are subjected to random phone checks by the police as they are only allowed to do so under specific circumstances.

The rights commission said members of the public should note down where the incident occurred and the police officer’s name and identification number if they encountered such incidents.

The concerns about phone checks stemmed from Razarudin’s remarks on Jan 14, in which he had said that police have the authority to check a person’s phone based on reasonable suspicion.

The IGP then said a search can be conducted without a warrant if the officer believes that the delay in procuring a warrant could compromise the investigation.

Razarudin had also explained that only police officers with a rank of inspector or higher are authorised to conduct checks on mobile phones