Tahfiz fire: Fate of seven youths to be known upon completion of investigations

The fate of the seven youths arrested for allegedly setting the Darul Quran Ittifaqiyah school on fire last Thursday will only be known after all the investigation processes were completed, according to Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun.

"It depends. We are still waiting for reports from respective parties like the Chemistry Department, Fire and Rescue Department and few more reports that are still in the midst of being completed within short spell of time," he told reporters after attending the High Level Committee (HLC) meeting of the Tahfiz Schools Special Task Force chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi at the Perdana Putra here today.

Mohamad Fuzi said this when asked whether the seven youths aged between 11 and 18 would be charged after their seven-day remand order ended this Friday.

When asked whether the parents of the youths would probably be charged with child neglect, the IGP refused to comment.

"It depends on our recommendation later. We need to discuss with the Attorney General and my officers are working all out now to complete the investigation," he said, adding that the police were looking into all aspects now to complete the investigations.

The seven youths from Datuk Keramat are currently held to facilitate in the investigation under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder and Section 435 of the same Code for mischief by fire.

The 5.15am fire at the tahfiz school last Thursday resulted in the death of 21 students and two teachers.

Meanwhile, in the joint press conference with the deputy prime minister earlier, Mohamad Fuzi said police had always monitored the curriculum at religious schools, including tahfiz schools, to ensure that no elements of extremism were being spread.

"We don't want the schools to be the centres that nurture Daish and Syiah ideologies. We have been monitoring for a very long time and until today, we didn't foresee any problem," he added. - BERNAMA