Just recently, the Royal Malaysian Police have mentioned that the parents or guardians of children and teenagers who were allowed to ride basikal lajak would have to face legal consequences for negligence. This was done in a bid to curb the rampant use of these modified bicycles among the youth, of which to date has resulted in 8 deaths.
Source: China Press
But what most people didn’t come to expect was to see how swiftly this new practice would be enforced by the police, as just recently six youngsters were detained for riding basikal lajak, and their guardians were brought in too for allowing them to do so, according to China Press and The Star.
The six adolescent youths who were involved in the arrest, all aged between 11 and 16, were caught riding their modified bicycles in the Ampang suburban area. The arrest occurred on Sunday (10th November 2019) at 8.50pm.
Source: China Press
But just as you thought that was the end to the arrests, the legal guardians of the six adolescents who participated in the basikal lajak race were also brought in by police. All were detained at Pandan Indah Police Station.
“The children were issued summonses and released to the custody of their legal guardians.” said Ampang Jaya OCPD Asst Comm Noor Azmi Yusoff.
Their illegally modified bicycles, however, were seized in line with Section 112(3) of the Road Transport Act 1987. As for the legal guardians themselves, they were detained under Section 33 of the Child Act 2001 for negligence but were then released on police bail after their statements were taken down.
Source: China Press
That’s not the end of it, as police are still investigating further into the matter and will soon be passing the case to the deputy public prosecutor.
We hope that these new stringent measures will deter teenagers from participating in these incredibly dangerous basikal lajak activities, and that their parents will know to keep a closer eye on them!
Also read: PDRM: Parents of ‘Basikal Lajak’ Racers Could Face RM20,000 Fine & Jail Time!
