Mom of disabled teen held for abuse probe

NILAI: The mother of a 15-year-old handicapped boy who was found neglected and malnourished at a flats unit in Taman Semarak here was detained by police for investigations.
Nilai police chief Supt Abdullah Roning said the 40-year-old woman, a food catering company staff, was remanded to assist in the probe for allegedly neglecting a child under her care under Section 31 of the Child Act.
“We are gathering evidence to ascertain what had taken place and why the boy, who was just skin and bones due to neglect and malnourishment, was left in such a deplorable state. The suspect is being held at the Seremban police lock-up and investigations are ongoing.” he told theSun when contacted today.
It is learnt that the woman, who also has another son aged six, had re-married after divorcing her first husband.
However, she was left to manage both her sons on her own as her current husband was not living with her.
On Saturday, Immigration Department officers, on a crackdown against illegal immigrants at the flats block, were taken aback when, by chance, they found the teenager, Muhammad Firdaus Dullah, who is physically and mentally challenged, living in extremely unhygenic conditions in a room at the unit.
The victim, who had a physique of a boy half his age, was born with deformed limbs.
He barely had any clothes on and could hardly move around on his own as he was too weak when Immigration Department personnel found him.
The officers contacted the Welfare Department before sending the boy to the Tuanku Jaafar Hospital in Seremban where he is being treated for severe malnourishment.
It is learnt that the victim was responding well to medical treatment and is expected to make a full recovery soon.