KOTA BHARU, April 16 — The suspect who opened fire at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Terminal 1 Arrival Hall on Sunday (April 14) morning before being arrested in Kota Bharu yesterday is believed to have attempted to escape to a neighbouring country.
Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain said this was based on the suspect’s frequent travel records abroad and the fact that he had his passport along with Saudi riyal and Thai baht currencies.
Speaking at a press conference in the Kelantan police contingent headquarters today, he said the police are also investigating the suspect’s method of escaping abroad.
“His travel records show that he made frequent trips abroad, like to Saudi Arabia and Thailand, before entering Malaysia.
“… yes, there is indeed an attempt by the suspect to escape through the country’s border and we are still collecting more information,” Shuhaily said.
Commenting on whether the suspect had applied for a visa to go abroad, he said the matter is still under investigation.
Initial investigations showed the suspect arrived in Kelantan on April 14 using the same car, namely a Honda Civic but changed the car’s registration plate number to avoid his movements being detected.
Before being arrested, the man was staying at a hotel in Kota Bharu.
“The suspect has four identity cards belonging to other people, and one of the identity cards was used to register with the hotel,” Shuhaily said.
The suspect used someone else’s identity card to avoid being identified by the public and detected by the authorities.
“But based on intelligence, the police managed to arrest the man near a private hospital at about 3pm after a brief struggle,” he said.
The suspect went to the private hospital to collect his complete medical examination report which had been completed before his arrest.
Commenting on whether the man had other networks in the shooting case, Shuhaily said the suspect moved alone without the help of other individuals.
“The suspect’s firearm is also believed to have been obtained illegally from a neighbouring country; how the suspect obtained it, we will investigate,” he said.
An examination has revealed the suspect’s mental health is normal and that the man planned the shooting of his wife by himself.
“After the suspect opened fire at KLIA (Kuala Lumpur International Airport), the man did not go anywhere else or meet any individual to ask for help but instead continued his journey to Kelantan,” Shuhaily said.
A week before the shooting incident, the suspect had just returned from Saudi Arabia and then went to Bangkok, Thailand, and entered the country via Kelantan.
Meanwhile, the police also seized a Glock 19 pistol, a magazine containing eight live bullets and a box containing 24 live bullets, a Honda Civic car, six mobile phones of various brands, a sum of Riyal and Baht foreign currencies, and a passport.
Yesterday, Inspector General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain confirmed that the suspect involved in the incident was arrested at about 3pm yesterday at a location in Kota Bharu, Kelantan.
In the 1.30am incident on Sunday, a man fired two shots, one of which hit his estranged pregnant wife’s bodyguard.
The bodyguard is being treated at a hospital and is in stable condition.
The police previously tried to track down Hafizul Harawi, 38, to help investigate the case.
— Bernama
