Police: Kulim officer alleged to have stepped on man’s head to be investigated, focus on arrest SOP compliance

KULIM, April 21 — Investigations into an incident involving a man being stepped on by a police officer during an arrest in Kulim, Kedah, are focused on compliance with arrest standard operating procedures (SOPs).

Kulim deputy police chief DSP Tengku Mohd Faisal Tengku Yeng said the Integrity and Standards Compliance Department (JIPS) has been instructed to conduct an investigation into the officer involved.

“The officer involved has been reassigned to administrative duties pending the outcome of the investigation,” he said in a statement today.

Meanwhile, he said the man involved in the incident has been remanded for three days until Thursday.

Yesterday, a 29-second video went viral on social media, showing a man being dragged off his motorcycle before his head was stomped on.

The 32-year-old suspect, who was detained at Jalan Sungai Ular near here, resisted arrest by kicking a police officer’s motorcycle before fleeing, and was later confirmed to have tested positive for methamphetamine.

Upon inspecting the suspect’s motorcycle, police found two transparent plastic packets believed to contain ketum juice.

The suspect, who has a prior criminal record, is being investigated under Section 30(3) of the Poisons Act 1952, Section 15(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, and Section 42(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987. — Bernama