GEORGE TOWN: A love of football has led 24 private college students straight into the arms of the law.
They had wrongly assumed that despite the enforcement of the movement control order (MCO), they could still kick the ball around within the confines of their college grounds on Jalan Cengal in Tanjung Bungah.
Northeast district police chief ACP Soffian Santong told reporters here today that a passer-by spotted the boys playing when he went past the college at about 5.30pm on Tuesday.
He tipped off the police and a team from the police beat in Tanjung Tokong rushed to the scene where they found the game in progress.
The policemen warned them that they were exposing themselves to the highly communicable Covid-19 virus and told them to abandon the game and leave.
However, Soffian said the players thought that they were safe because the pitch was sealed off by a fence.
But, the police managed to dismantle the automatic gate and then invaded the pitch to place all 24 men under arrest.
Soffian said all of them, who were residing in the hostel within the college grounds, were later released on police bail.
They are expected to be charged soon under Section 269 of the Penal Code and Regulation 11 of the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Rule.
If found guilty, the face a jail term of up to three months or a fine of up to RM1,000.
In Penang, more than 100 people, including a prominent cardiologist, have been charged with defying the MCO.
