JOHOR BARU: Police investigating a suspected paedophile have found that he had allegedly sexually abused about 15 other children, a source said.
Police are tight-lipped about the investigations, but sources told the New Straits Times that “sickening” evidence, captured on video, indicated that the 29-year-old went beyond sexually abusing children.
The hundreds of images and dozens of videos showing him assaulting children are so graphic that they have left even seasoned investigators shattered.
“Grown men wept openly,” the source said. “These are officers who have seen the worst — murders, mangled bodies and brutal crime scenes. But this, this broke them.
“The scale and cruelty were overwhelming.”
It was previously reported that the suspect, who is married with children, was arrested on suspicion of uploading child sexual abuse material (CSAM) to the dark web and Telegram groups for profit.
The source said the suspect found the children, who are now in welfare homes, through online advertisements seeking to adopt kids of unwed or single mothers.
The mothers were mostly foreigners and a handful of Malaysians.
The suspect, described as a soft-spoken, bespectacled man with a trimmed beard, only cracked after three days of interrogation.
It is learnt his wife broke down in hysteria when told of his suspected crimes.
“He hid in plain sight. Nobody suspected him. That is what makes this case so disturbing,” the source said.
Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk M. Kumar had said police were working with foreign agencies to trace the spread of the material online.
“We are facing enemies we cannot see. The dark web makes it difficult to track those accessing this content,” he said at a recent press conference in Kuala Lumpur.
He also issued a warning to parents and guardians, advising them to protect their children as “paedophiles often hide in plain sight within communities, targeting children left unsupervised”.
The police have also roped in the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to help with investigations. MCMC was expected to reveal who had contacted the suspect via the ads he posted online.
State Women, Family and Community Development Committee chairman Khairin-Nisa Ismail cautioned unwed mothers against handing over their babies to strangers online.
“This is not only illegal but exposes children to grave danger. Always use legitimate channels and do not be deceived by offers of cash,” she said.
Khairin-Nisa confirmed that the children rescued are now under the care of the state Welfare Department and are undergoing counselling.
She said a public awareness campaign would be launched soon to highlight the risks.
She also urged single mothers, including undocumented foreigners, to seek help through official agencies instead of strangers.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
