Kelantan police chief Yusoff Mamat says investigations are ongoing to determine the roles of three Orang Asli men who were among those detained. (Bernama pic)
PETALING JAYA: Two of the 13 people arrested for gathering outside Istana Negeri in Kubang Kerian, Kelantan earlier this week are believed to be former followers of the banned Ayah Pin cult, say police.
Kelantan police chief Yusoff Mamat said they have not ruled out the possibility that the gathering was linked to elements of a deviant teaching, adding that the group had intended to hand over old items to “Sultan Muhammad VI”.
“Two of the individuals were former followers of Ayah Pin. They are in their 40s and among the five who tested positive for drugs.
“Initial investigations found that they wanted to hand over old items — machetes, swords and spears — to Sultan Muhammad VI, not the fifth,” Sinar Harian reported him as saying in Machang today.
Cult leader Ariffin Mohammed, known as Ayah Pin, died in 2016 after making headlines with his teachings about the “Sky Kingdom”, which the Terengganu Islamic and Malay culture council’s fatwa committee declared as deviant in 1986.
Yusoff said investigations were ongoing to determine the roles of three Orang Asli men who were among the detainees.
Earlier, police said all 13 people, including a woman, were arrested for gathering in front of the palace at about 11.40am on Tuesday.
Several sharp weapons, including a keris, spear and sword, were seized from the group, along with wooden sticks, bamboo canes, a copper teapot, copper cups, coins of various currencies and a yellow songket.
All suspects have been remanded for four days until Saturday while investigations continue.
The case is being investigated under Section 143 of the Penal Code for participation in an unlawful assembly, and Section 7(1) of the Corrosive and Explosive Substances and Offensive Weapons Act 1958 for possession of weapons.
