TEEN CRIME GANG BUSTED

PENAMPANG: Police have busted a teen housebreaking gang following the arrest of three suspected members.

And, they also seized stolen items worth RM25,000 from the houses of the trio, aged between 14 and 18, on July 14.

Two persons who bought two stolen notebooks from the teenagers have also been detained.

Initial police investigation showed that the young suspects, all of them local school dropouts have been active since early this year and were believed to be responsible for at least seven housebreaking cases in Penampang.

Speaking to reporters here yesterday, district police chief DSP Madang Usat said the mastermind of the gang was an 18-year-old boy.

Among the stolen items seized from the trio included nine bicycles, a digital camera and four mobile phones.

To a question, Madang said the two individuals who bought the stolen notebooks for RM200 each were picked up after the teenagers were arrested.

“They were unable to produce any document to prove that the notebooks were not stolen items,” he said.

The three teenagers and their buyers are being held at the police lock-up to facilitate further investigation.