National police chief Mohamad Fuzi Harun said the five include two from Malaysia, one from Pakistan, another from Egypt, and the last from the Middle East. They were detained in Malaysia’s Selangor, Perak, Kuala Lumpur, and Sabah by counter-terrorism officers during the operation from October 13-26.
The 50-year-old Egyptian suspect has been working as an executive manager in a private firm in Kuala Lumpur and was caught in Selangor on October 13.
“He is a former Al-Qaeda member, active in Afghanistan from 1988 to 1993,” Mohamad Fuzi Harun said. “He met Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden once and admitted to using fake travel documents to enter Canada, Pakistan, and Azerbaijan.”
The man was previously arrested in Egypt and Canada for terrorism-related activities as well as using fake travel documents, he added.
Sources say the Egyptian had been in Malaysia since May. He had been planning to expand his construction company in the country. “Authorities are checking whether he used valid documents to enter Malaysia,” The Star newspaper said. “They are also checking on his other activities in the country.”
These are the latest arrests of terror suspects made by Malaysian authorities. The country has detained a total of 433 suspects linked to terror groups since February 2013. –VNA