Escaped 'Casanova' arrested

A suspect dubbed as ‘Casanova’ who escaped from police custody in Penang last year have been arrested in Kuala Lumpur following a tip-off.

Computer technician, K.Prabaharan, 45, was detained near a fast food restaurant in Jalan Raja Laut here around 7.40 pm on Thursday.

Police source said they received a tip-off on the suspect’s whereabout and went to the scene to arrest him. But upon seeing the police, he tried to flee the scene but failed.

The police then immediately arrested him.

Federal Crime Investigation Department director, Datuk Hadi Ho Abdullah confirmed the arrest.

On Oct 9 last year, Prabaharan who was taken to the George Town Session Court to face at least 10 cases of cheating in Penang, Perak, Johor and Kedah but he escaped from police custody at 1.50pm.

He was about to be taken to Penang prison after attending court in Cameron Highlands.

His criminal spree of cheating involved a large sum of cash and gold and most of his victims are women.

He also allegedly claimed himself to be a ‘Datuk Seri’ and a doctor to his victims.

After his escape, a senior police woman, ASP L. Chandkumary, 56 from Bedong, Kedah was charged with negligence at the magistrate court for intentionally releasing Prabaharan.

She is also facing another trial for lodging a false report, claiming that the suspect had disappeared when she was writing down a statement on the case at her office.

The offence under Section 182 of the Penal Code carries a jail term of up to six months or a fine of up to RM2,000, or both.