Man Attempts Taking Baby Hostage After Being Caught Stealing At Supermarket

BUTTERWORTH, Aug 9 (Bernama) -- Police arrested a Vietnamese man who not only stole from a supermarket here but also attempted to take an 11-month-old baby hostage while trying to escape in an incident on Jalan Telaga Air here today.

Seberang Perai Utara (SPU) district police chief ACP Anuar Abd Rahman said that in the incident at 12.45 pm, the supermarket supervisor saw the man trying to escape from the premises with several weighed seafood items without making payment.

The supervisor, who was the complainant in the case, successfully caught the man, but the suspect managed to escape before fleeing. However, the supervisor attempted to recapture the foreigner.

"At that time, the man had pulled an 11-month-old baby boy who was with a family member, and was also holding a knife and pointing it at the public, including the baby," he said in a statement tonight.

Anuar said, however, with the help of several supermarket employees and members of the public who were there, the suspect, in his 30s, was subdued before being handed over to the police who arrived at the scene after being contacted by customers there.

He said further investigations are being conducted and the case is being investigated under Sections 380, 324 and 506 of the Penal Code, namely theft in a building, causing injury and criminal intimidation.

Previously, several videos went viral showing a tense situation and dramatic action when a foreign man was seen trying to escape while holding a plastic bag and a knife in an incident at a supermarket, attempting to abduct a baby boy believed to be for ransom.

-- BERNAMA