Setia Alam shooting suspect held family at gunpoint for 45 minutes; victim begged to protect kids

SHAH ALAM, Feb 10 — A man and his family endured a terrifying 45-minute ordeal when the suspect in the Setia Alam shopping mall shooting incident forced them to drive him away at gunpoint.

Harian Metro reported that the 30-something-year-old driver of a Perodua Ativa, who declined to be named, recounted the distressing experience of being held hostage by the gunman, who instructed him to leave the mall’s premises before dropping him off by the highway last Saturday.

“We were about to enter our car when he suddenly appeared in the parking area and pointed a gun at us. I was stunned. He even fired a shot at the wall to show that the weapon was real,” he told Harian Metro today.

Recounting the moments leading up to the encounter, the man said he, his wife, and their four children had just finished dining at a restaurant in the shopping mall when security guards abruptly ordered shoppers to leave.

“We didn’t know what was going on, but I quickly took my family out of the mall. As we were heading to the parking area, I heard a loud bang.

“At first, I thought it was just the sound of a car hitting a speed bump. But then I saw multiple vehicles speeding away. Just as we were about to get into our car, the suspect suddenly appeared and pointed a gun at us,” he reportedly told the Malay daily.

The gunman then ordered the family to get inside their car before sitting in the back seat.

“I asked him to put the gun away so my children wouldn’t be scared. He told me to drive out of the area and only got out by the highway.

“He was in the car with us for about 45 minutes. Before fleeing, he took the memory card from the dashcam,” the man said.

Yesterday, Harian Metro reported that police have identified the suspect as a local man with 11 prior criminal and drug-related offences.

Selangor police chief Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said the suspect, believed to be in his 30s, was identified through police intelligence and CCTV footage.

“We are actively tracking him down,” he said.