KUALA LUMPUR: The
cold-blooded double murder of bouncers by a gunman outside a club early Sunday
has raised concerns that the capital's entertainment scene has slid into the
control of gangsters, even as police rounded up 10 suspects while the manhunt
for the shooter continues.
Police sources said although
the motive for the mass shootings outside Madurai Club at Heritage Row that
left four patrons injured has not been determined, investigations did not
discount the possibility of turf war involving rival gangs.
Two of the injured are still
in KL Hospital (KLH) while the rest received outpatient treatment.
Two others who had initially
been described by police as bystanders, are in critical condition at KLH. They
were reportedly set upon by a mob following the shooting but investigations are
now centred on whether the duo were part of the gunman's group.
City CID Chief Datuk Ku Chin
Wah said police had rounded up the 10 suspects, aged between 21 and 37, in a
follow-up operation in the Klang Valley.
"The manhunt for the
shooter is still on and we are getting some vital leads," he said.
Club owners told The Malay
Mail there were indications that violence involving bouncers and patrons was
spiraling out of control.
They claimed gangs were in
control of the city's popular entertainment enclaves at Jalan P. Ramlee,
Changkat Bukit Bintang and Heritage Row along Jalan Doraisamy.
The owners said they were at
the mercy of these gangs and had no choice but to hire their members to provide
security, even if they did not have any experience or training to handle
delicate situations.
"That's why we end up
having people as young as 18 playing the bouncer role. Due to their
inexperience, fights break out regularly," said an owner.
"We want professional
bouncers who would be able to defuse a situation and protect the reputation of
the club."
Gangs, they said, were
aggresively maneuvering to capture more of the lucrative bouncer market.
Speaking on condition of
anonymity, the owners said they were raising their concerns with the media
because the situation was getting out of hand.
The authorities, they said,
were not much of a help.
"We are in a fix. The
police can't help us and the gangsters can shut us down if we don't give in to
their demands," another owner said.
Club owners and the public
reacted with fury following the Madurai mass shootings that left bouncers Mohd
Akmal Gemain, 21, and Mohd Nor Firdaus Rashid, 20, shot in the head and left
rib, respectively.
The shooter became enraged
when his friends who had gone before him were refused entry at 4.30am. A fight
broke out and shooting madness began.
The incident was
unprecedented in the capital's entertainment industry.
There are demands that City
Hall and other authorities enforce closing times of entertainment outlets.
Madurai had often operated until 5.30am.
Many are unhappy the
Heritage Row, once a prime entertainment enclave, had now degenerated into an
area that attracted dubious characters.
There had been several
brawls in various clubs there with calls from various quarters to step up
security and ensure operating conditions were observed.
Mayor:
City Hall Spot Checks Soon
Kuala Lumpur City Hall will
be conducting spot checks on the nightspots at the Heritage Row in Jalan
Doraisamy to ensure closing hours are strictly observed.
Mayor Datuk Ahmad Phesal
Talib told The Malay Mail yesterday that this was to prevent the premises from
breaching regulations, such as operating without permission and extending their
operating hours.
"We had a high-level
department meeting (yesterday morning) including with the Licensing Department.
Spot checks will be conducted soon," he said, adding that they are
drafting a schedule for the checks.
He said under the KL Federal
Territory Entertainment Act 1992 and Entertainment Regulation Act 1993 (Act
493), all premises require licences to carry out business at the Heritage Row.
"They must also be
granted permission from the mayor if they wish to extend their operating hours
beyond 1am."
Ahmad Phesal said City Hall
would cooperate with other authorities, such as the police and Immigration
Department, if there were criminal activities that would affect the city's
reputation.
"The licences can be
suspended or revoked if any of the premises breached the Act and failed to
follow City Hall regulations.
"At the moment, we have
to wait for the police to complete their investigation into the shooting before
we can take further action," he said.
He said all the outlets in
the area had been licenced to operate food and beverage businesses.
Beyond
our control, says heritage body
The Badan Warisan Malaysian
has no legal standing in the management of the Heritage Row despite the
buildings there being a close to a century-old.
Its executive director,
Elizabeth Cardosa, said in a statement yesterday that the body was an NGO with
the aim of conserving and preserving Malaysia's building heritage.
"We do not own, nor do
we manage the properties called Heritage Row," she said in response to
Sunday's shooting of two bouncers working at a club operating from one of the
colonial houses in the enclave.
Cardosa said the buildings
there were built between the 1920s and 1930s as residential properties.
"In the early 2000s,
they were progessively changed into commercial properties, mainly F&B and
entertainment outlets.
"The prerogative to
rent these properties out belongs to the owner while the local authority (City
Hall) has the right to decide on the change of use/licencing for these
activities," she said. (The Malay Mail)
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