Bede Hong (Malaysiakini)
Sep 24, 07 4:49pm
After two weeks of chasing leads, Terengganu police are closing in on the flag-burner during the Pantai Batu Buruk riot last month, and expect to make an arrest soon.
State police chief Ayub Yaakob said the investigation team has obtained new information on the suspect, whose act of setting the Malaysia flag alight was captured on camera and splashed in dailies early this month.
“We are working very hard on this … very relentless. We hope to complete investigations before Ramadhan ends (next month),” said Ayub when contacted today.

A Bernama photograph captured the rioter in the act of burning the national flag along what appears to be Jalan Sultan Mahmud, Kuala Terengganu, during the riot on Sept 8.
The individual, who was wearing a motorcycle helmet, was facing away from the camera. Similar photographs have surfaced on the Internet.
Among those questioned during the investigation were juveniles.
“We found that some of those involved (in the riot) were schoolboys, so we are a bit more gentle in our procedures,” claimed Ayub.
He said that those with information “need not fear” the police: “We still appeal to people with information to come forward. We (the police) are not doing to do them any harm.
“We are not going house to house. You don’t expect to the police to go to each and every house in Terengganu to identify people.”
Casualty update
Seven individuals, including four police personnel were injured during the riot.
Gunshot victim Suwandi Abdul Ghani (photo) is reported to be recovering at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia in Kelantan. Suwandi was shot in the chest by a police constable.
Muhamad Azman Aziz – who was shot in the neck – was discharged from Sultanah Nur Zahirah Hospital in Kuala Terengganu two weeks ago.
Federal Reserve Unit personnel Azmi Hussein remains in hospital, reported Ayub, adding that the police constable who opened fire is still on medical leave.
Police are looking for 33 individuals in connection with the riot. Four are expected to be charged at the magistrate’s court in Kuala Terengganu on Wednesday, the New Straits Times reported today.
The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia will decide on a public inquiry after its monthly meeting on Oct 8. It completed a two-day fact-finding mission last week.