31 men detained after a brawl at Karak police station

Police have detained 31 people in connection with a fight which broke out at the Karak police station yesterday.

Bentong police chief Supt Mohamad Mansor Mohd Nor said they would be detained until Thursday to facilitate investigations, but declined to elaborate on the incident.

However, it is learnt that police were forced to fire a warning shot to disperse a fight between members of two groups who went to the Karak police station, purportedly to lodge a report.

The fight was prompted by an earlier incident where two men, aged 19 and 20, belonging to one of the groups, were allegedly caught stealing scrap metal from a premises in Karak.

This prompted the workers at the scrap yard to seek the help of their friends to catch the alleged thieves, who fled in a car.

According to police sources, the two groups met at a location and a quarrel broke out when the two men denied stealing from the scrap yard.

The timely arrival of the police at the scene prevented the situation from getting worse, but they were told to go to the Karak police station to lodge a report.

However, he said, a fight broke out between the two groups again in the police station where the officer-in-charge at the station, Sub Insp Nik Hamdan Mamat, fell after being pushed while trying to disperse them.

He said police were forced to fire a warning shot when members of the two groups went out of control and continued fighting.

Seven of them were injured and sent to Bentong Hospital for treatment, he added.