EO repeal made scapegoat for S'gor crime surge

Deputy Selangor police chief A Thaiveegan today repeated the blame game on the repeal of the Emergency Ordinance (EO) as contributing to the recent crime surge in the state.

Thaiveegan said rising complaints of Selangor crime levels may be a result of the mass release of suspected criminals from Simpang Renggam detention centre following the EO repeal.

"The government is confident that they (the detainees) should be given a chance to start a new life so that they return to the right path, but do they return to the right path or not, we do not know yet.

"But we see there is a rise in crime (recently) because they've been in (detention) for too long, they need 'exercise', so they come out and immediately they carry out their activities," he said in his speech at a car and motorcycle theft prevention campaign in Subang Jaya this morning.

However, when approached later, Thaiveegan stressed that more time and evidence is required to establish whether there a direct link between the release and the surge in crime.

"There may be one or two cases here and there which we are handling, there could be reasons why there is a sudden surge, there are a few criminals who have returned to society and they may take time to change (their ways).

"I can't confirm yet (because of the EO). It could be, but we will need time to confirm that. Give us another month or two then we will confirm," he said.

Earlier in his speech, Thaiveegan said that in the overall, crimes in the state has still seen a dip in total cases.

"Today in Selangor, in the overall, all crimes have fallen by 11.2 percent, but of course people are still not happy... but we are doing our best," he said.
According to Home Ministry figures, crime in Selangor has gone down by 19.4 percent since 2009 and 24.7 percent nationwide during the same period.

Crime statistics disputed 

However, the figures have been disputed by Pakatan Rakyat MPs, including Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua following the recent spat of violent crimes in the state.Earlier in his speech, Thaiveegan said that in the overall, crimes in the state have still seen a dip in total cases.

Pua (left) had complained that the Home Ministry had not been forthcoming in providing a statistical breakdown of crime in Selangor, providing him with three different set of figures for 2009.

The country's three emergency proclamations which had been in effect for up to 40 years was tabled in Parliament Nov 24 last year.

The move voided all ordinances set up during the emergency but allowed a grace period of up to 6 months for detainees under the law to be held in detention.

However, the government had begun releasing detainees in phases as soon as the emergency was lifted.

The law, allowing detention without trial, was often used against suspected underworld members when police lacked sufficient evidence to prosecute.

In recent months, several high-profile violent crimes have been highlighted.

The most recent was on Thursday, when a women was set ablaze outside her house in Ampang and a day later a father shot dead outside his son's school in Sri Kembangan.

A series of robberies targeting women in parking basements of shopping malls have also hit the headlines in the last few months, with at least two such incidences reported at The Curve and another at Mid Valley.