CEO Nasiruddin Mohd Ali and his family members detained.
Police have arrested 19 top leaders of the Global Ikhwan Services and Business Holdings (GISBH), including its CEO Nasiruddin Mohd Ali, as part of its probe into alleged abuses against children committed under the organisation’s watch.
According to Inspector-General of Police Razarudin Husain, the arrests were carried out in a dawn raid on four residential units in Bukit Bintang.
Reports indicate that besides Nasiruddin, others arrested include his wife and children, as well as children of former al-Arqam leader, the late Ashaari Mohammad.
A media notice from Bukit Aman stated that police would be seeking to remand all 19 detainees this afternoon.
Previously, the police raided 20 welfare homes allegedly run by GISBH and rescued almost 400 children, some of whom had reportedly been sodomised.
GISBH denied operating the homes raided, and initially denied abusing the children under its care.
Nasiruddin, however, later admitted that there were “one or two” cases of sodomy but that this should not be used to tar the whole organisation.
Ashaari formed GISBH after the government banned al-Arqam as a deviant sect.
Meanwhile, two motorhomes driven by five men allegedly linked to GISBH were reportedly brought to the border to renew soon-to-expire International Circulation Permits (ICPs), according to the Kedah Immigration.
In a statement posted on the department’s Facebook page on Wednesday (Sept 19), it said no immigration law violations were found, but it decided to closely collaborate with the police as further investigations into GISBH are underway.
“According to information from the Immigration Department, the GISBH vehicles were expected to exit Malaysia through the Bukit Kayu Hitam border around 3pm and were scheduled to stop near the complex.
“Upon receiving this information, enforcement teams acted quickly by investigating and locating two motorhomes carrying five individuals.
“An initial inspection revealed that all five individuals were Malaysian citizens aged between 29 and 45. A check of their travel records showed their last journey abroad was on Aug 20 through the same border checkpoint,” it said.
It was earlier reported that one of the five arrested near the Bukit Kayu Hitam border checkpoint is believed to be the son of a GISBH leader.
Razarudin Husain said all five have been remanded for a week.