18/01/2026

NATIONAL 5 theSun on Sunday JAN 18, 2026

Arrested ex-journalist released KUALA LUMPUR: Former Free Malaysia Today

Thirty-year-old detained on Friday freed on police bail after having statement recorded

Duo crushed while repairing lorry brakes KUCHING: Two men were killed after being crushed by a 10-tonne lorry loaded with stones while repairing the brakes on the vehicle along Jalan Mambong in Siburan. According to a statement from the Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department Operations Centre, a distress call regarding the incident was received at 2pm on Friday. “The incident occurred when the two victims (the lorry driver and attendant) were repairing the brakes at a quarry road before being crushed and trapped underneath the vehicle. “Rescue operations to extricate the trapped victims were later successfully carried out,” it said. – Bernama Report received on missing actress SEPANG: Police have confirmed receiving a report on the disappearance of actress Nadia Kesuma at the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah. The report was lodged by a family member at the KLIA police headquarters here on Friday. KLIA police chief ACP M. Ravi, when contacted by Bernama, confirmed receiving the report and said further investigations are under way. The actress, whose real name is Nadia Kasumawati Abdul Karim, was reported missing after she could not be traced while transiting at King Abdulaziz International Airport during her flight from Kuala Lumpur to London on Thursday. stressing that such references were unnecessary and should have been avoided. water as he is familiar with Malaysia.” Meanwhile, Saifuddin Nasution said Free Malaysia Today had also issued an apology, clarifying that the incident did not reflect the agency’s position. He said the incident had drawn widespread public reaction, with some supporting the arrest on legal grounds while others opposed it on the basis of suppression of freedom of speech. On Friday, Tan issued a public apology over the incident, expressing regret over the “poorly framed question” and acknowledging that it was not relevant to the event and failed to take into account the sensitivity of the issue. He specifically apologised for mentioning the Chinese and Malay communities,

police, as an enforcement agency, were carrying out their responsibility to ensure compliance with the law and not to suppress public freedoms. “When there is a complaint, the police will consider further action as part of the initial process. “Investigations are ongoing and if he is required to complete the investigation, he may be called at any time,” he added. He said he respected freedom of speech but stressed that such freedom must be exercised responsibly. He added that Tan was covering the event involving Galloway when he made a comparison between the situation in Palestine and the treatment of the Chinese community in Malaysia. “(Galloway’s) response was very clear, stating that the comparison did not hold

journalist Rex Tan, who was arrested on suspicion of raising racial issues during a public lecture on Palestine, was released yesterday afternoon. Tan, who is being probed for sedition, was released on police bail after having his statement recorded, Free Malaysia Today reported Bukit Aman criminal investigation department director M. Kumar as saying. Kumar said the 30-year-old was arrested by a team from the Classified Criminal Investigation Unit at about midnight on Friday. He said the investigation was initiated following a question posed by Tan to UK politician George Galloway during a forum on Jan 12, which allegedly contained elements of racism and incitement. “During the session, Tan

racial issues during the public lecture. Earlier, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Ismail had informed him that Tan would be released after his statement had been recorded. “Investigations are ongoing. Once they are completed and the investigation papers are submitted to the Attorney General’s Chambers, any further decision will fall under their jurisdiction,” he said when met after the Project Mesra Rakyat indenture handover ceremony to a contractor at Kulim Hi Tech Park in Kedah yesterday. Saifuddin Nasution said

raised a question on the Palestinian issue by comparing it with racial conditions in Malaysia. “So far, three police reports have been lodged in connection with the matter, reflecting public concern over the incident,” he said in a statement yesterday. Kumar added that the case is being investigated under Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act 1948, Section 505(c) of the Penal Code and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998. Tan, who has since resigned from Free Malaysia Today, was captured in a video that was widely viewed online showing him raising allegedly

TOTALLY DESTROYED ... Firefighters dousing embers after a blaze involving a double-storey house in Kampung Hulu Sesang, Sarawak yesterday. – PIC COURTESY OF FIRE AND RESCUE DEPARTMENT Trafficking syndicate busted in northern state operations

about RM250,000. “Records show two of the three suspects have criminal records. “However, all tested negative for drugs and other prohibited substances,” he added. Following the initial arrests, a Myanmar man in his 30s, believed to be the syndicate leader, was detained in Nibong Tebal the following day. All four suspects were detained under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 for 28 days until Feb 11, while the foreign nationals were remanded for 14 days under the Immigration Act 1959/63 until Jan 28. – Bernama

in their 40s, and the teenage girl are believed to have acted as transporters, using rented vehicles to ferry the foreign nationals. He said one of the men and the teenager are father and daughter. Interrogations revealed the suspects had been promised payment to transport the foreign nationals and are believed to have carried out similar activities several times over the past eight months. The team seized the MPV and SUV, 18 mobile phones, cash and various jewellery items, with total seizures estimated at

Wednesday by the Intelligence Branch of the GOF Northern Brigade headquarters, in cooperation with Kubang Pasu police. “During the operation, police arrested two local men and a 16-year-old girl believed to be involved in human trafficking and migrant smuggling using two vehicles, an MPV and an SUV. “Further checks uncovered 16 illegal immigrants believed to have entered the country through unregulated routes from neighbouring countries,” he told a press conference yesterday. Balveer said the two men, both

JITRA: The General Operations Force (GOF) has smashed a human trafficking syndicate led by three locals and a Myanmar national in two operations carried out here and in Nibong Tebal, South Seberang Perai in Penang on Wednesday and Thursday. GOF Northern Brigade commander SAC Balveer Singh Mahindar Singh said 16 illegal immigrants believed to be Myanmar nationals, comprising nine men and seven women aged between 16 and 35, were detained. He said the first operation was conducted at the Jitra toll plaza (southbound) at about 4am on