KUALA LUMPUR: A concerned group of Ikatan Rakyat Insan Muslim Malaysia (IRIMM) members today lodged a police report calling for a young Russian backpacking couple to be investigated for endangering their four-month-old baby’s life through stunts in Bukit Bintang.
IRIMM’s president Amir Amsaa Alla Pitchay said the report was made to show the seriousness of the issue and to make sure that the couple do not repeat the offence.
“Their irresponsible act is complete nonsense because they are deliberately exposing the baby to danger, just for money. If you want to beg, do it some other way, not by using your baby.
”Maybe in other countries it’s not a crime to put your child at so much risk but in Malaysia we will not accept such behavior” he said when asked to comment.
Amir said that another reason the NGO lodged the report at Dang Wangi station was to make sure the Russian couple were investigated properly.
”I read somewhere that police cannot initiate any investigation into the couple because there was no police report made against them,” he said.
He said the child’s safety should be a priority, regardless of anything else. He also called on the welfare and immigration departments to act in their capacity, respectively.
Meanwhile, Dang Wangi criminal investigation department chief M. Gunalan, when contacted, said the couple, aged 27 and 28-year-old, were released on bail today with the baby.
“The case is being investigated by Federal Child Investigation Centre (D11). The couple have been granted bail after doctors examined the baby and found nothing was wrong,” he said.
Earlier a video clip of the couple and their baby doing stunts at Bukit Bintang for donations had gone viral.
Their act in the 90 second clip had caused the Russian backpackers to be picked up by the police for questioning yesterday.
Today, however, after medical examination and lengthy questioning, they were released.
The couple who had just arrived in Malaysia from Thailand claimed they were backpackers who were on a world tour without any money. They would sell anything they got or perform whatever they know to collect the money needed to survive in a place and enough to travel to their next destination.
Of late this has become a common scenario where many travellers set out on a very minimal budget and when they become broke they turn to the society for help.
It is learnt that the couple have been advised to stay off the streets doing any sort of performance until they leave for their next destination.