Police have arrested a 29-year-old man after he injured a salesman with a meat cleaver in a shocking incident at Jalan Bandar Timah yesterday. Ipoh district police chief ACP Abang Zainal Abidin Abang Ahmad said the suspect was taken into custody at 11:45am following a public tip-off.
According to the police, the 49-year-old victim, who works at a local premises, was attacked from behind at around 11:30am when the suspect stabbed him in the back. The assailant then demanded money, and when the victim said he had none, he grabbed a hammer from the shop entrance and smashed the window of a lorry.
A friend of the victim shouted at the suspect, prompting him to throw the hammer, injuring the friend in the right leg. The suspect then seized a meat cleaver from a nearby restaurant and attempted to flee. The chase ended at a gold shop in Little India, where the victim managed to stop the suspect, and the shop worker alerted police.
The victim suffered cuts and scratches but had no prior connection with the suspect. Police revealed that the unemployed man has eight previous drug and criminal records, and a urine test showed he was positive for methamphetamine.
The suspect is set to be remanded tomorrow as investigations continue under Sections 324 and 427 of the Penal Code. Earlier, a 34-second video showing a man brandishing a meat cleaver in front of a gold shop went viral on social media.
