Cops nab cross-dressing thief

PETALING JAYA: Barely two weeks out of jail, a 21-year-old man disguised as a woman turned to crime again when he sneaked into a surau in Sunway Pyramid, Bandar Sunway here and stole a clutch bag from a teenager while she was performing her prayers on Saturday.
The suspect who had feminine facial features and resembled a real woman, was clad in a blouse and maxi.
The man also wore a hijab to evade suspicion.
Subang Jaya police chief ACP Mohammad Azlin Sadari said today that the 19-year-old victim, a college student, was performing her prayers at the surau at about 8.40pm and found the clutch bag she had placed next to her missing when she was done.
He said the woman rushed out of the prayer house and alerted a security guard on duty.
To her relief, the guard informed her that the suspected thief was caught and handed over to police together with the stolen handbag.
Azlin said the woman went to the Sunway police station nearby where she recovered from police her branded clutchbag containing about RM400, a cellphone and other valuables.
He said the suspect who has a past criminal record for theft and drug-related offences was freed from prison only 11 days earlier after serving a sentence for an undisclosed case.
Azlin said the suspect is in police custody under a four-day remand order.