PETALING JAYA: A gang of robbers who have been mugging victims since late July has been busted by police following raids on five locations in Selayang and Gombak.
Ampang Jaya police chief Mohamad Farouk Eshak said they had received six reports of armed robberies in the district since the end of July.
He said the group, known as Geng Acoi, would target victims walking alone in secluded locations, with two motorcycles used in turns to make it harder for police to trace them.
A special police team carried out the raids from Aug 3 to 6, during which they arrested eight Malaysians aged between 21 and 35, including one woman.
One of the suspects was a wireman while the rest were unemployed. Seven had criminal records and were wanted in connection with a narcotic and commercial crime case.
Police recovered 74 handphones and three laptops believed to have been stolen from their victims.
They also seized three parangs, four swords, two pen knives and one axe in addition to two power banks and six motorcycles.
Six of the detainees tested positive for methamphetamine, Farouk said in a statement today.
He said none of the victims was hurt during the robberies.-FMT