Malaysian police detain CEO and other leaders of Islamic group as probe into child sex abuse widens

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysian police on Thursday detained the CEO and other top leaders of an Islamic business group that is under investigation after hundreds of children believed to be sexually abused were rescued this month from welfare homes linked to the group.

National police chief Razarudin Husain said 12 men and seven women were detained following a police raid on a condominium in Kuala Lumpur. They ranged in age from 25 to 65.

Nasiruddin Mohamad Ali, CEO of Global Ikhwan Services and Business, and several members of GISB's advisory board were among those detained, Razarudin told The Associated Press. Others arrested on the list seen by AP included two of Nasiruddin's four wives and two of his children.

Some family members of the late Ashaari Mohamad, who headed the Islamic sect Al Arqam, which was deemed heretical and banned by the government in 1994, were also named on the list. Global Ikhwan was founded by Ashaari and flourished after his death in 2010.

Nasirudin earlier said in a video there may be cases of sodomy in GISB homes but denied any wrongdoing.

The arrests came after police rescued 402 children from 20 welfare homes linked to GISB on Sept. 11. Dozens of suspects were arrested in the case, which outraged the nation and sparked calls for better child protection and monitoring of childcare centers.

Razarudin has said some of the children, aged from 1 to 17, were believed sodomized by their guardians and taught to sexually abuse each other. He said they were denied medical treatment and burned with hot metal spoons as punishment for being disobedient. Medical screening has so far showed that at least 13 teens were sodomized and 172 children suffered long-term physical and emotional injuries, Razarudin said.

The children, whose parents are Global Ikhwan employees, were placed in the homes since they were infants and believed to be indoctrinated from a young age to be loyal to the group, police have said. The children were also believed to have been exploited to collect public donations.

Authorities have frozen 96 bank accounts linked to GISB, with a value of 581,000 ringgit ($137,000), as part of the investigation into sexual abuse, child neglect, human trafficking and money laundering.

GISB, which aims to promote an Islamic way of life, owns mini-markets, bakeries, restaurants, pharmacies, properties and other businesses abroad. It employs some 5,000 people. Global Ikhwan gained attention in 2011 when it formed an “Obedient Wives Club” that sparked controversy by teaching women to be “good sex workers” to keep their husbands from straying.

Apart from the criminal investigations, Islamic authorities are also checking on other homes and religious schools under GISB amid concerns it is promoting deviant teachings linked to Al Arqam.

On Thursday, three young men were charged with sexually assaulting young children in a religious school in southern Negeri Sembilan state. Razirudin said the trio were linked to GISB but gave no further details. Earlier this week, a businessman linked to GISB was charged with criminal intimidation for threatening a former GISB staff to withdraw a complaint to police.

Members of Global Ikhwan Services and Business Holdings (GISBH), center in plain clothes, escorted by Royal Malaysian Police officers depart after a court appearance in Seremban, Malaysia, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

Members of Global Ikhwan Services and Business Holdings (GISBH), center in plain clothes, escorted by Royal Malaysian Police officers depart after a court appearance in Seremban, Malaysia, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

The headquarters of Global Ikhwan Services and Business Holdings (GISBH) in Rawang is seen on the outskirts of Selangor state, Malaysia, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

HONG KONG (AP) — The first person convicted under a tough new Hong Kong national security law was sentenced on Thursday to 14 months in prison for wearing a T-shirt with a protest slogan.

Chu Kai-pong, 27, wore a shirt on June 12 reading “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times,” a slogan chanted during anti-government protests in 2019. That day was the fifth anniversary of a demonstration in which thousands of people surrounded the city's legislative council complex to protest a now-withdrawn extradition bill. Months of often-violent protests followed as demonstrators expanded their demands to call for greater police accountability and democracy.

Authorities have said the protest slogan could imply the separation of Hong Kong from China — a red line for Beijing.

Chu pleaded guilty in court on Monday to the charge of carrying out an act or acts with a seditious intent.

The city's new security law, which critics say further stifles freedom of expression, took effect in March and imposes stiffer punishments for sedition offenses. Offenders face up to seven years in prison, up from the previous maximum sentence of two years for a first offense and three years for a subsequent offense.

Colluding with an external force to carry out such activities is now punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

In handing down the sentence on Thursday, Chief Magistrate Victor So said June 12 is viewed as a symbolic date among protesters and Chu's case was not minor. He noted that Chu had already been jailed for sedition earlier this year and his subsequent act showed the deterrent effect of his previous sentence was insufficient.

He said Chu was “evidently unwilling to reform,” but reduced the prison term by one-third because of Chu's guilty plea.

In January, So sentenced Chu to three months in jail under a colonial-era law before the security law took effect. In that case, Chu was arrested for wearing a similar T-shirt at the airport and possessing publications deemed seditious by authorities.

The court heard on Monday that Chu had told police that he wore the T-shirt in June to remind people of the 2019 protest movement. Chu also wore a mask printed with “FDNOL,” an abbreviation of another protest slogan, “Five demands, not one less."

The prosecution accused Chu of attempting to cause hatred, contempt or disaffection toward the country's fundamental system and the city's constitutional order. It said his acts could incite others to use illegal means to change what the authorities have decided on.

The 2019 protest movement was the most concerted challenge to the Hong Kong government since the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997. It waned because of massive arrests, the exile of democracy activists, the COVID-19 pandemic and the imposition of an earlier 2020 security law by Beijing.

FILE - A protestor holds a flag that reads: "Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of Our Times" at a rally in Hong Kong, on Dec. 12, 2019. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)