GEORGE TOWN, May 19 — A man who tried to snatch a submachine gun from a policeman on duty at the Dato Keramat police station here has been arrested and will be remanded for four days, Penang police chief Datuk Hamzah Ahmad said today.
He said the 35-year-old man had initially approached the gate of the police station at about 4am today in a drunken fit while shouting obscenities at the policeman on duty at the gate.
“He had ordered the officer on duty to open the gate while swearing at him,” Hamzah said in an official statement issued today.
He said the policeman on duty warned the man to stop and advised him to leave but the man ignored him.
“Instead, he went directly to the policeman and tried to snatch his HK MP5 submachine gun, but he was successfully blocked from doing so,” he said.
He said the man then tried to attack the policeman with a helmet and a scuffle ensued before he was finally arrested.
“The suspect has two previous criminal records and two drug offences records,” he said.
He said initial urine tests of the suspect did not reveal any traces of drugs in his system.
“We will be investigating the case under Section 353 and 506 of the Penal Code and Section 90 of the Police Act 1967,” he said.
Section 353 is for using criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of his duty and 506 is for criminal intimidation while Section 90 is for disorderly conduct in a police station.
He said the suspect will be remanded until May 22 for further investigations into the case.
