Seven detained over arson attack on Taiping churches

The police believe they have solved last week's arson attacks on two churches in Taiping, Perak, with the arrest of seven suspects.

Perak police chief Zulkefli Abdullah said the seven, aged between 17 and 29, were arrested last night and this morning.

They would be remanded until Jan 27 to facilitate investigations.

The seven are being investigated under Section 295 of the Penal Code for injuring or defiling a place or worship and Section 436 for causing mischief with fire or explosives.

The first offense carries a maximum two-year jail penalty and/or a fine, while the second offense carries a maximum 20-year jail term and/or a fine.

"We believe their arrests can help resolve the arson attempts on two churches and a school on Jan 10," Zulkefli told a press conference in Ipoh today.

Zulkefli said the suspects had no criminal records nor did they belong to any criminal group or political party. He said the suspects might have carried the alleged acts spontaneously.

"They were acts of mischief, a reaction to the issue in the media," he said according to Bernama.

On Jan 10, Molotov cocktails were hurled at two churches and the guard post of a school, SMK Convent in Taiping.

While there was no damage to the two churches, the school's guard post suffered some minor damage. The school sits adjacent to the St Louis Church.

The incident in Taping was one in a series of attacks where more than a dozen places of worship - mostly churches - have fallen victim to arson or vandalism attacks in recent weeks.

These incidents are believed to be related to the High Court landmark decision to overturn the Home Minister ban on the use of the term ‘Allah' by Catholic publication Herald.