A 48-year-old Singaporean man has been arrested in connection to the alleged assault of three madrasah students on Friday (April 1), said police on Saturday.

The female students, aged 14 to 16, were on their separate ways to Madrasah Al Maarif Al Islamiah, near Paya Lebar MRT station, when the man allegedly assaulted them.

Police investigations are ongoing.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Investigations & Intelligence) concurrent Director of the Criminal Investigation Department, Tan Chye Hee said: “The Police take a stern view of acts that could threaten the racial and religious harmony in Singapore. Any person who caused hurt to others on the basis of their race or religion will be dealt with severely in accordance with the law.”

In an earlier response to media queries, police said they received a call at about 7.33am requesting for assistance along Lorong 39 Geylang. Upon their arrival, it was established that a case of Voluntarily Causing Hurt was reported.

Home Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam posted about the case on his Facebook page at around 11.30pm on Friday, saying the motives for the attack were not clear. He said he had asked the police to “get to the bottom of it and ensure that justice is done”.

A Facebook post by a user named Nisha Mohd Hussein, purportedly a teacher from Madrasah Al-Ma’arif Al-Islamiah, said on Friday that “at about 7.20am at Paya Lebar MRT, our students ... (were) physically abused by a stranger”.

She also described the victims’ description of the assailant, adding that one student was kicked on the left thigh, another hit by a heavy item contained in a plastic bag, and the last was “hit in the same manner on one of her eyes”.

On the madrasah’s Facebook page on Friday, a post said the affected students have been counselled.

The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) also issued a statement on Saturday calling for calm and to “let justice take its course”.

Following the arrest of the 48-year-old suspect, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean said Singapore as a society "should stand together against all forms of violence against innocent persons, especially if there may be racial or religious undertones".

Environment and Water Resources Minister Masagos Zulkifli added he was glad that Singaporeans remained calm in the face of the incident.

"Let's not let anyone take advantage over incidents like this to incite hatred and division while it's being settled by the authorities," he said on Facebook.

Source:
courtesy of TODAY

by Today

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