MUKAH: Police in Mukah have arrested two foreign men suspected of stealing construction equipment linked to a bridge project in Kampung Tellian Tengah.
Mukah police chief, Muhamad Rizal Alias, said the arrests were carried out by a team from the Criminal Investigation Division of the Mukah district police headquarters following intelligence gathering and surveillance operations on May 14.
The case is being investigated under Section 379 of the Penal Code for theft and Section 15(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
According to police, the theft was reported on May 3 by a 40-year-old local man who works as a company manager.
The complainant alleged that several construction tools belonging to a bridge construction project in Kampung Tellian Tengah had gone missing.
He also suspected two of his workers, who had allegedly disappeared, of taking the equipment.
Police estimated the losses at about RM5,000.
The first raid was conducted at around noon at a wooden hut in Kampung Sesok, where officers detained a 34-year-old suspect.
A second operation, carried out about an hour later at a workers’ quarters along Jalan Desa Tanjung, led to the arrest of another suspect, aged 33.
DSP Muhamad Rizal said minimal force had to be used during the arrests as both suspects allegedly acted aggressively and attempted to flee upon noticing the presence of police.
During the operation, the second suspect allegedly led investigators to the location where the stolen items had been hidden.
Police recovered one drill, two grinders and one jigsaw. A mobile phone belonging to one of the suspects was also seized to assist investigations.
Both suspects and the confiscated items were taken to the Mukah district police headquarters for further action.
Urine tests conducted on the suspects found them positive for amphetamine and methamphetamine.
The two men have been remanded for three days until May 18 to facilitate investigations.
