Man uses firecrackers to stage robbery at goldsmith but fails

JOHOR BAHRU: A man set off firecrackers to distract the public before attempting to rob a goldsmith’s outlet at a supermarket in Taman Mutiara Rini, Skudai here last night.

However, the 33-year-old local resident was arrested at the scene after police received a call from the public at 10pm, Iskandar Puteri district police chief Dzulkhairi Mukhtar said.

“Our initial investigation found that the unarmed man set off firecrackers at the centre of the supermarket, then entered through the front door of the jewellery outlet when the rolling shutter was half closed and headed to the safe at the back.

“The man also punched the shop manager, causing her to sustain injuries to the face,” he said in a statement today.

He said the suspect had seven records involving six robbery cases and one case of vehicle theft. — Free Malaysia Today