Eerie encounter for media team

A team of journalists and photographers who ventured into Kampung Tanjung Labian to look out for possible stories today morning, got terrified when they spotted an armed man.

Fearing the worst, the group of men and women who were travelling in two separate vehicles, were forced to duck down to avoid possible gunshots from the man.

Recalling the life-threatening incident, The Star photographer Normimie Diun told The Star that the man ducked and disappeared into the bushes upon seeing them.

''When I saw him, I shouted to the others inside the car to bend down and not show our cameras. My immediate thought was that he could have mistaken our equipment to be weapons and fire at us.

''We were scared because if he was a member of the security forces, he would have told up to turn back," she said.

The group then decided to make a U-turn and head back to the main Felda road but they were met with another frightening scene.

About 30 terrified Tanjung Labian villagers were fleeing the area in panic.

Bernama journalist Mohd Hisham Abdul Rafar said they stopped the group to ask what is the matter and was told that they are running because they heard four shots fired from within the area," he said.

The media team then left the area immediately.

None of the media personnel were hurt and they arrived safely at Felda Sahabat 16, about 130 kilometres from Lahad Datu town.