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KUALA LUMPUR: Police arrested the owner of an illegal catfish pond and his four Indonesian workers on suspicion of causing water contamination in Sungai Selangor on December 7.
The water discharged from the pond is believed to have the contamination caused by the odor that halted the operations of the Rantau Panjang and Sungai Selangor Phases 1, 2 and 3 Water Treatment Plant (LRA) operations on December 7.
More than 850 areas of Selangor suffered water supply interruptions when treatment plants were shut down.
The head of Selangor’s Criminal Investigation Department, Fadzil Ahmat, said that the five people, aged between 28 and 50, were detained during a raid in Bukit Sentosa, Hulu Selangor, on Tuesday.
He said the 50-year-old owner of the fish pond located in Serendah, Selangor, is believed to have emptied the pond, leading to contamination.
“A further investigation also found that the farm has been operating without a license for the past three years, while all the suspects were detained for one day from yesterday.
“The police will request an extension of pretrial detention at the Hulu Selangor Magistrates Court to complete the investigation,” it said in a statement.
Fadzil said the case was being investigated under Section 430 of the Penal Code for mischief that resulted in water interruptions.
Former Selangor member in charge of the environment Hee Loy Sian said the initial investigation detected a foul odor believed to be from dead fish in raw water samples obtained from Sungai Selangor.
