Eight deny charges of claiming to be ‘god clones’ in ‘Tuhan Harun’ deviant sect case

SHAH ALAM, Dec 20 — Eight individuals pleaded not guilty in the Syariah High Court here today to charges linked to the deviant sect, Tuhan Harun.

The three men and five women had their charges read separately before Syarie Judge Dr Zainal Abidin Kusmin.

They were charged with making false claims by declaring themselves as god clones, posting in Telegram chat groups claiming that Harun is god and conspiring to make similar false claims through the same application.

The charges, under Section 8B and Section 46B of the Syariah Criminal Enactment (Selangor) 1995, carry a maximum fine of RM5,000, imprisonment for up to three years, or both upon conviction.

Zainal Abidin allowed oral bail for all the accused with two local sureties and set the case mention for Monday (Dec 23).

Meanwhile, Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS) director Datuk Mohd Shahzihan Ahmad, in a statement, said that the individuals were arrested during a raid on a premises in Bandar Baru Salak Tinggi, Sepang, at around 2.30 pm yesterday.

“Intelligence gathering revealed that the group’s profile and modus operandi are similar to and closely related to the Tuhan Harun teachings,” he said.

He said that JAIS also confiscated several devices, including mobile phones, laptops, tablets, and documents related to the teachings during the raid. — Bernama