A local man who tried to enter a school by holding a student’s hand was arrested on Friday afternoon for taking drugs, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Ho Chan Nam said at a press conference yesterday.
The 44-year-old jobless suspect is surnamed Chan. Ho said that Chan is a repeat offender. He was arrested last year for taking drugs.
According to Ho, a local school in Areia Preta district reported to the Judiciary Police through the school safety liaison network system on Friday morning that a man suspected of having a mental disorder attempted to enter the school twice. The school official told the police that after the man failed to enter the school on his first attempt, he tried his second attempt by holding the hand of a schoolchild pretending to be the parent in order to enter the school. When the man was discovered by the school staff they suspected that the suffers from a mental condition. So, the staff stopped him and told him to leave the school and then reported the case to the police. No students were injured or scared after the incident.
Ho said that the Judiciary Police and the PJ’s Youth Concerned Group official rushed to the school to investigate. PJ officers later found Chan in a park near the school. The officers realised that Chan was in a trance. Ho said that a resident in the neighbourhood told the police that the man appearing to be “disorientated” used to go to the public toilet in the park. The officers later seized two used blood-stained syringes and a plastic bottle cap stained with liquid from the litter bin in the toilet’s cubicle. The liquid was found to contain soporific ingredients and methadone.
Under questioning, Chan denied taking drugs, but he tested positive for soporific and methadone. The Judiciary Police are following up on the case to find out why Chan attempted to enter the school. The Judiciary Police have notified the Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) about the incident, according to Ho.
Chan was transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) on Saturday, facing a drug abuse charge, according to Ho.
Meanwhile, the Judiciary Police call on young people to increase their vigilance and self-protection awareness, and to be wary of “weird” strangers approaching or following them. If a student discovers or witnesses any wrongdoing, he or she should inform their school, parents, school counsellors or call the Judiciary Police’s Youth Concerned Group hotline 8800-5500.
This pixelated photo provided by the Judiciary Police (PJ) yesterday shows PJ officers questioning the drug taker in a park in Areia Preta district on Friday.
This undated handout photo provided by the Judiciary Police (PJ) yesterday shows the public toilet in a park in Areia Preta district which the drug suspect used to frequent.
