Police Deny Escorting Cable Thieves In Ampang After CCTV Footage Goes Viral

CCTV footage appeared to show a police MPV trailing a vehicle linked to cable theft. Bukit Aman says the officers were responding to an emergency call – and an arrest followed. The footage, however, had already done its damage online.

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In Brief

Bukit Aman denied claims of police collusion, stating the MPV responded to a 3:59am emergency call about suspected cable theft near a mosque.
A suspect has been arrested in connection with the case, with officers confirmed to have followed standard operating procedure throughout.

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Police have denied claims that one of their own patrol vehicles was escorting a group of suspected cable thieves in Ampang.

The allegations followed CCTV footage from a house near Al-Ubudiah Mosque in Kampung Tasik Tambahan, which went viral on Facebook and Threads.

The clip appeared to show a police Mobile Patrol Vehicle (MPV) travelling behind a vehicle believed to be carrying stolen cables.

It didn’t take long for the comments to pile on – why was the patrol car just driving past and doing nothing?

Ampang Jaya district police chief ACP Khairul Anuar Khalid said the MPV was dispatched after an emergency call came in at 3:59am last Saturday.

The caller reported suspicious activity believed to be linked to cable theft near the mosque.

A suspect has since been arrested in connection with the case.

Bukit Aman Weighs In

Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation and Community Safety Department director Datuk Noor Hisam Nordin also addressed the claims, telling Sinar Harian that any suggestion of collusion was untrue.

He said the MPV was acting on directions from the Ampang Jaya district police operations room, and that the vehicle had its beacon lights activated throughout, in line with standard operating procedure.

Noor Hisam added that the patrol team’s actions were a direct response to the public complaint, not a case of officers looking the other way.

A Recurring Problem

The motive is almost always the same: copper.

Telecommunications and power cables contain copper wiring that thieves can strip and sell to scrap metal dealers, often for quick cash with little traceability.

The thefts disrupt internet connectivity, street lighting, and, in some cases, critical infrastructure.

In May, six suspects were arrested in Shah Alam, with police linking the group to multiple other cable theft cases in Selangor.

Police in Kota Kinabalu and Seremban have also carried out chases after catching suspects mid-theft, while a policeman in Kluang was injured after falling off his motorcycle during a pursuit earlier this month.

For now, the official account is straightforward: a call came in, a patrol car responded, and an arrest followed.

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