Gold trader latest victim of Malaysian guy attacks
Police examining the bullet holes in Mr Wong Foo Yui's car. He had stopped at a traffic light in Kuala Lumpur yesterday when two men on a motorcycle shot him three times. He was hit but managed to drive away.
Yong Yen Nie
The Straits Times
Monday, Aug 05, 2013
KUALA LUMPUR - A gold merchant became the latest victim of a gun attack on Friday, as official figures show that violent crime has shot up nationwide in the first half of this year.
Malaysians have been alarmed by a spate of shootings in the past week. Three people, including a prominent banker, died and several others were injured in the attacks that appear to have been committed by hired gunmen.
Police statistics released by Pemandu, the country's economic reforms agency, show that there were 15,098 violent crime cases such as armed robberies in the first six months, up from 14,811 in the same period last year.
Murders rose to 322 in the six-month period compared with 291 last year.
Overall, however, crime has fallen to 74,127 cases, from 76,247 last year.
Crime experts say by releasing the rising violent crime index, the government is finally acknowledging public concerns about safety.
"In fact, it has been long overdue since rising crime is one of the key issues during election campaigning since 2008," Professor P. Sundramoorthy, a criminologist at the Universiti Sains Malaysia, told The Straits Times.
"With such acknowledgement, measures to curb violent crime will be able to kick in faster."
The recent shootings have been especially worrying because almost all the victims had been attacked in broad daylight or in public places.
In Friday's incident, Mr Wong Foo Yui had stopped his car at a traffic light in Pandan Indah, Kuala Lumpur, when two men on a motorcycle rode up, and one of them shot him three times.
One of the bullets hit Mr Wong's shoulder, but the 34- year-old managed to drive to a police station 500m away. Police are now investigating the case and looking for the suspects.
In a similar shooting last Saturday, crime-watch group chairman R. Sri Sanjeevan was shot as his car stopped at a traffic light in his hometown of Bahau in Negeri Sembilan. He is still in hospital.
Meanwhile, police are still hunting for the main suspect in the murder of banker Hussain Ahmad Najadi on Monday. The 75-year- old was shot in the chest and lower abdomen at close range as he was walking towards his car in Kuala Lumpur. His wife was also hit but survived with injuries.
Datuk Seri Idris Jala, Pemandu's chief executive officer and Minister without Portfolio in the Prime Minister's Office, said the government is taking immediate steps to curb violent crime even as it drafts tougher legislation.
Noting that it takes up to six months to introduce new laws, he said the government will use existing laws to fight rising crime.
These include provisions to allow police to intercept communications and to use electronic devices to monitor the whereabouts of people released on bail.
