KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has apprehended an armed man at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur, its top security official said, describing the man as a suspected Israeli spy.
According to Reuters the man, who was found carrying 200 bullets and six handguns, has arrived at Kuala Lumpur Airport from the UAE on March 12 using what officials believed to be a fake French passport, Inspector-General of Police Razarudin Husain said.
Razarudin said that the suspect turned over an Israeli passport upon enquiring by police officials. He said that police authorities were probing the possibility that the person could be a member of Israeli intelligence, though the suspect told officials he had come Malaysia to hunt down another Israeli person due to a family dispute.
Razarudin said that they do not fully trust over his statement as they suspect there may be another agenda. IG Police said that the arrested man had moved between various hotels during his stay in Malaysia.
Malaysia Arrests Man Suspected of Being an Israeli Spy
Razarudin said that Police were also probing how the suspect obtained the arms, which were bought in Malaysia and paid for with cryptocurrency. Officials were on high alert after the arrest, with security beefed up for Malaysian monarch, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and other high officials, he said.
Malaysia is a staunch supporter of the Palestinian people and has criticized Israel’s attack on Gaza. According to the UN refugee agency, Malaysia does not have diplomatic relations with Israel, is home to about 600 Palestinian refugees.
In 2018, a Palestinian scientist was killed in Kuala Lumpur by two unidentified men that Hamas said that the killing was carried out by Israel’s Mossad intelligence service.
