TAWAU: Police searching for a group of gunmen in Kampung Sri Jaya in the Simunul area in Semporna may have walked into a trap that was set for them.
According to sources, the gunmen appeared ready for the police raid and opened fire as the police were on the narrow single-plank walkways linking the various houses on stilts.
Five policemen, including an officer, and two unidentified gunmen were killed during the firefight that occurred around 7pm yesterday.
Police have encircled the village, one of many that are perched on stilts over the sea, to track down remaining gunmen.
Inspector General of Police Ismail Omar confirmed that his men may have been lured in by decoys and fired upon as they entered the water village.
He said that police had moved in based on a tip off that there were armed men in the vicinity.
“Based on this information, a police team from the Semporna district police headquarters entered the place but were ambushed when they arrived,” he told a press conference in Felda Sabahat Residence, Lahad Datu today.
The Semporna shooting comes just after the killing of two policemen on Friday in Lahad Datu, where a shootout with armed intruders loyal to the Sulu Sultanate took place.
Ismail said police were unsure if the two incidents are linked.
He also said the police had arrested three men, one armed with a knife, who were trying to slip through a security cordon around Kampung Tanduo in Lahad Datu late Saturday. They are being interrogated.
The death toll has now climbed to 21 in two days with seven policemen killed in the line of duty both in Lahad Datu and Semporna. Friday also saw 12 gunmen loyal to the 74-year-old Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III killed. This group had ‘invaded’ Lahad Datu on Feb 12 to stake a claim on Sabah.
A source said that police are also “keen to get in touch with Mohd Akjan Ali Muhammad, the businessman who proclaimed himself as the ‘Sultan of Sulu’ in 2011. Akjan is also a former Umno member who has the loyalty of a large number of Filipinos in the state.
Akjan, according to sources, however cannot be located.
There are also unconfirmed reports that the General Operations Force (GOF) centre in Kinarut near here, a complex that was contracted to Akjan, is on heightened alert as is much of the police stations throughout Sabah.
There is a large Filipino refugee settlement in Kinarut, a small town located about 20 kilometres south of Kota Kinabalu.
Kota Kinabalu police chief ACP Javeh Dikun meanwhile said reports of a group of around 500 Filipinos gathering in Sepanggar, the main port about 30 minutes drive from the state capital are false. He advised the public to ignore rumours circulating in the social media.
Residents fleeing Semporna
Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman also told reporters that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak had assured that security in Sabah was being given top priority following Saturday night’s shooting.
“From my side, I will be working closely with the Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein and Defence Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to monitor all areas apart from Lahad Datu,” he said.
Musa said Sabah police commissioner Hamza Taib and the army were also gearing up operations statewide.
“I am also calling for cooperation and assistance from local leaders to tone down the sentiments and numerous rumours on what is happening in Sabah,” he said, adding that people should stop speculating and spreading rumours and increasing anxiety.
In Tawau, residents are also running scared.
“The Chinese community here are worried,” said a journalist based there.
In another development, eye-witnesses claimed that another shooting incident happened in Kampung Pelangi, Bukit Garam near Kinabatangan, about an hour’s drive outside Lahad Datu. This report could not be confirmed.
By Michael Kaung and Azman Habu
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteSememangnya topik pencerobohan “tentera Diraja Kesultanan Sulu” yang mencemar kedaulatan negara menjadi perbualan hangat sekarang. Terpampang didada akhbar dan pelbagai media mengenai insiden berdarah itu.
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteBermacam-macam jenis gambar turut tersiar dan tidak kurang juga cerita-cerita yang ditokok tambah disiarkan oleh pihak yang tidak bertanggungjawab. Paling tak tahan, gambar keganasan yang meletus di Narathiwat, Thailand, juga disiarkan sama…
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteSehingga kini, disahkan secara rasmi bahawa sudah 7 orang anggota PDRM telah terkorban di dalam pertempuran dengan gerila Sulu yang mengganas di Sabah itu. Antara kawasan yang disyaki telah disusup masuk penceroboh-penceroboh itu ialah Lahad Datu, Semporna dan Kunak.
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteMeskipun sudah menyenaraikan seramai 7 mangsa dari kalangan anggota PDRM, pihak berkuasa itu menegaskan bahawa keadaan di ketiga-tiga lokasi terbabit adalah selamat.
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteKenyataan itu disokong oleh siaran media arus perdana yang menunjukkan rakyat di Lahad Datu masih bebas membeli belah di pekan Lahad Datu dan mereka masih lagi boleh keluar berkerja seperti biasa.
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteTahniah kepada pasukan keselamatan yang berjaya memastikan keadaan selamat di kawasan-kawasan tersebut.
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeletePun begitu, ramai lagi mereka-mereka yang masih suka mencari populariti dengan mensensasikan kejadian-kejadian yang berlaku di sana. Gambar-gambar operasi pasukan keselamatan di merata kawasan itu disiarkan sewenang-wenangnya.
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteTidakkah mereka sedar bahawa siaran gambar-gambar tersebut di internet bakal mendedahkan maklumat keselamatan negara kepada penceroboh-penceroboh tersebut?
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteMisalnya, jika kita menyiarkan gambar pasukan keselamatan yang berkawal di depan simpang tiga tertentu di Lahad Datu, sudah tentu penceroboh dari Filipina itu dapat menghidu lokasi tersebut dan mengelak dari menggunakan jalan terbabit.
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteBukankah itu tindakan yang tidak wajar? Janganlah berbangga dengan siaran yang kononnya eksklusif yang mampu menjejaskan keselamatan dan kedaulatan negara ini…
Justeru itu, saya merayu kepada semua pengguna internet yang sayangkan Malaysia supaya jangan sesekali menyiarkan tentang gerakan atau informasi pasukan PDRM dan Angkatan Tentera Malaysia diluar sana.
ReplyDeleteRAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteJusteru itu, saya merayu kepada semua pengguna internet yang sayangkan Malaysia supaya jangan sesekali menyiarkan tentang gerakan atau informasi pasukan PDRM dan Angkatan Tentera Malaysia diluar sana.
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteBukan apa, dalam hal seperti ini, tindakan yang melulu pasti akan membawa padah. Seharusnya, gunakan akal yang dikurniakan Allah untuk mempertahankan kedaulatan negara ini.
RAKYAT JUGA BOLEH SAMA-SAMA BERJUANG MENENTANG TAUSUG.. IAITU DENGAN TIDAK MENDEDAHKAN GERAKAN ATM DAN PDRM KEPADA PIHAK MUSUH
ReplyDeleteMungkin kita tidak mampu berjuang mengangkat senjata, tapi sekurang-kurangnya kita berjuang menggunakan akal yang kita ada. Tak salah, kan?
At least 289 Filipinos arrived here from Sabah early Sunday after they were deported by Malaysian authorities.
ReplyDeleteThe deportation occurred amid the “homecoming” of the followers of the Sultan of Sulu to Sabah.
ReplyDeleteJamila Arasid, head of the Social Welfare Department Western Mindanao’s Processing Center for Displaced Persons here, said among those who arrived at around 1 a.m. Sunday were women and children on a commercial vessel from Sandakan, on the east coast of Sabah.
ReplyDeleteBut Arasid clarified the deportation had nothing to do with the tension in Lahad Datu.
ReplyDelete“They are Filipino workers or Filipinos without proper working papers previously arrested in Malaysia, jailed and their papers are completely processed for deportation to our country,” Arasid said.
ReplyDeleteManaloza, a native of Sindangan in Zamboanga del Norte, had lived in Lahad Datu for 10 years before his arrest. His wife was also arrested and is now jailed somewhere in Sabah. He is worried that his 16-year-old daughter was left behind in Lahad Datu.
ReplyDeleteAdzlina Sibung, 26, surrendered to the Malaysian police to escape from her abusive husband. To her dismay, she and her five children were also arrested and jailed for two months. Now she wants to return to her home to Tawi-tawi.
ReplyDeletePutrajaya has been deporting Filipinos accused of illegally coming to Sabah for years now although in some cases, authorities in the Malaysian state would reportedly turn a blind eye on illegal aliens.
ReplyDeleteArasid said that for 2012, a total of 7,532 Filipinos had been sent home, 5,622 of whom were males, who worked in oil palm plantations there. But in the last quarter of 2012, some 158 children of illegal workers in Sabah had also been sent home.
ReplyDeletependuduk kampung berjya membunuh seorang penceroboh di Semporna, ini mempelihatkan penduduk jg turut sama berjuang.
ReplyDelete