20/10/2026

TUESDAY | OCT 20, 2026

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Animal sexual abuse may signal wider risks

S’gor Palace seeks probe into alleged

impersonation SHAH ALAM: The Selangor Palace has called for a thorough investigation into allegations that a person posed as the Raja Muda of Selangor’s personal bodyguard to deceive members of the public in land and luxury car deals. In a statement, the Office of the Sultan of Selangor said it took the allegations seriously and had referred the matter to the police. “The Selangor Palace administration takes this matter seriously and has referred it to the Royal Malaysia Police for a thorough, fair and transparent investigation. “The palace will not protect anyone found to be involved in the case,” it said. The palace urged the public to check with its administration before entering into transactions with anyone claiming to represent or have connections to the royal household. Selangor police chief Datuk Shazeli Kahar confirmed that the Sultan of Selangor’s Security Control Office at Istana Mestika lodged a report on Oct 15. “The report concerns the misuse of the Raja Muda of Selangor’s photograph by the owner of a Threads account, ‘dwan_hamid’, who allegedly posed as the Raja Muda’s aide de-camp (ADC) to deceive members of the public in property and vehicle transactions. “An investigation paper has been opened under Section 420 of the Penal Code, and efforts are under way to trace the suspect,”he said in a statement yesterday. Shazeli advised the public to verify such claims through official channels before making any payments or entering into financial transactions. – Bernama Perhilitan verifies tiger footprints in Gerik IPOH: Perak’s Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan) has confirmed finding Malayan tiger footprints on a farm near Gerik, about 2km from the Bintang Hijau Forest Reserve, and is monitoring the area for residents’ safety. Its director Dr Pazil Abdul Patah said personnel from the department’s Gerik district office found the prints during an inspection near Jalan Air Betang–Jalan Kampung Air Panas on Oct 14. “Initial field investigations indicate that the report is credible, as Malayan tiger footprints were indeed found. The orchard is estimated to be about 2km from the Bintang Hijau Forest Reserve,” he said in a statement to Bernama yesterday. Images of the footprints, believed to belong to a Malayan tiger, circulated widely on social media on Oct 14 and raised concern among residents, Bernama reported. Pazil said the department had taken steps to reduce the risk of an encounter and would continue monitoring the area. He advised residents to stay alert, avoid going out alone early in the morning, late in the evening or at night, and keep livestock in secure enclosures. “Our team is conducting regular inspections and monitoring in the area where the footprints were found and its surroundings, while also gathering information from residents and farmers. “The public is also advised not to provoke, approach or attempt to track the animal. Any new sightings should be reported immediately to the department through its official complaint channels,”he said.

vulnerable person. “Rather than viewing it purely as an automatic ‘stepping stone’, clinicians treat it as a critical red flag that a person’s behavioural boundaries, moral compass and impulse controls have already broken down significantly.” Chan said psychological intervention could help reduce repeat offending, but it required a structured forensic risk assessment and specialised treatment rather than standard counselling alone. An assessment should establish whether the behaviour was opportunistic, linked to sexual arousal involving animals or part of broader antisocial conduct, so treatment could be tailored to the person’s risks and needs. Cognitive behavioural therapy and relapse prevention programmes could address attempts to minimise the harm or claim that an animal had been willing, while helping the person develop better impulse control and a plan to prevent further abuse. Treatment could also include exercises to develop empathy and consider the animal’s experience, alongside care for underlying trauma, paraphilic disorders or substance abuse where relevant. “Psychological treatment alone is rarely sufficient without structural safeguards, such as legal bans on animal ownership, proximity restrictions, and close monitoring to ensure compliance,”

he said. His comments follow a call by Persatuan Haiwan Terbiar Malaysia (SAFM) for police and the Veterinary Services Department, with the cooperation of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, to investigate the alleged sexual abuse of a cat. Police have since arrested a man in Pasir Puteh, Kelantan, in connection with the footage, which allegedly shows him abusing the animal at his home. Police chief Saari Yaacob said a report was received on Sunday. The case is being investigated under Section 377 of the Penal Code and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998. Before the arrest, SAFM had urged police and the Veterinary Services Department, with the cooperation of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, to investigate the allegation and secure relevant digital evidence. “Such allegations must be taken seriously. If proven, the act would constitute a grave form of animal abuse that warrants stern action under Malaysian law,” SAFM president Kalaivanan Ravichandran said in a statement. The association had also urged the authorities to consider Section 29 of the Animal Welfare Act 2015, where applicable.

o Serious problems with empathy and impulse control can raise concern over harm to other vulnerable victims: Expert

Ű BY T.C. KHOR newsdesk@thesundaily.com

victimisation might target animals because they could not reject or retaliate, giving the perpetrator a sense of control. Severe physical, emotional or sexual abuse in childhood could disrupt healthy psychosexual development and attachment, he said. In some cases, the behaviour might occur alongside intellectual disabilities, neurocognitive impairments, severe substance intoxication or personality-related problems that affect impulse control and judgement. Chan said the abuse of animals could be a warning sign of diminished empathy, as perpetrators disregarded the animals’ fear, distress and pain. It could also be associated with antisocial or psychopathic traits. He said research into what forensic psychologists call the “violence link” has found associations between animal cruelty and offences against people, including domestic violence, child sexual exploitation and elder abuse. Someone who rationalised harming a vulnerable animal might apply similar thinking to a

PETALING JAYA: Sexual abuse of animals may indicate serious problems with empathy and impulse control and could raise concerns about the risk of harm to other vulnerable victims, including people, a psychologist has warned. International Psychology Centre principal consultant psychologist Dr Edward Chan said such behaviour rarely had a single cause. It could stem from a combination of psychological, developmental and behavioural factors. “From a psychological standpoint, this behaviour rarely exists in a vacuum. It often intersects paraphilic fixations, profound interpersonal deficits, or severe developmental trauma, where an animal becomes an accessible outlet for power, control, or sexual gratification,” he told theSun . Chan said some perpetrators might have a sexual fixation on animals. Others with severe social anxiety, difficulties forming relationships or a history of

All 140 had been blacklisted and

barred from re-entering Malaysia for

periods set by the authorities. – PIC COURTESY OF THE JOHOR IMMIGRATION DEPARTMENT

Ű BY THESUN TEAM newsdesk@thesundaily.com 140 foreign detainees sent home from Johor entering Malaysia for periods set by the authorities.

their embassies. The department said travel arrangements, including ticket purchases, could be made directly at the Pekan Nenas Immigration Depot’s service counter without a service charge. For information on repatriation procedures, the public can contact the depot’s Records and Transfer Unit at 07-6993540 or use the Immigration Department’s online enquiry system.

Airport, the Sultan Iskandar Building and the Stulang Laut Ferry Terminal. The department said their sentences were for offences under the Penal Code, the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, the Immigration Act 1959/63, the Immigration Regulations 1963 and other laws. Repatriation costs were paid from the detainees’ savings, contributions from their families or, in some cases, flight tickets funded by

In a statement yesterday, it said Indonesians made up the largest group, with 45 repatriated, followed by 26 Myanmar nationals, 21 Pakistanis and 20 Bangladeshis. The others were 10 Thais, eight Indians, eight Vietnamese and two Singaporeans. They were sent home through Terminals 1 and 2 of KL International

PETALING JAYA: Johor’s Immigration Department repatriated 140 foreign nationals from eight countries through the Pekan Nenas Immigration Depot in the second week of October, after they completed prison sentences for various offences. The department said all 140 had been blacklisted and barred from re