Kelantan cops stand firm, gay gathering raid not linked to health programme
State police chief Datuk Mohd Yusoff Mamat said that, based on intelligence gathering and public interviews, the Kelantan Police Task Force found that invitations to the gathering had been sent through specific WhatsApp groups.
"Investigations showed that the invitations to the programme did not mention any involvement or organisation by official bodies such as non-governmental organisations (NGOs), health clinics, or the Health Ministry.
"There was also no information indicating that the programme had received approval or was being monitored by any authorised party," Yusoff said in a statement late last night.
On the day of the raid, Yusoff said the police Task Force had been monitoring the venue since 5pm, as the event was scheduled to take place between 8pm and 11pm, according to the invitation.
He added that at around 8pm, the number of attendees had increased to about 100 people, who were observed dining and engaging in casual conversation.
"By around 11pm, the majority of attendees had left the premises. The raiding team took precautionary measures and only conducted the operation at around 1am to ensure it proceeded smoothly without posing any risk to public safety.
"During the raid, police found 20 men at the premises, and they admitted to being part of the gay community.
"It was also established during the raid that no representatives from NGOs or any government health agencies, including the Health Ministry, were present."
He added that documentation conducted on the 20 men revealed that 18 were from Kelantan, one from Perak, and one from Besut, Terengganu, who is a student at a higher learning institution in Kelantan.
"Checks on their mobile phones revealed that three of them possessed pornographic videos involving same-sex activities. Some also admitted to having engaged in same-sex activities.
"Police also found hundreds of condoms and several boxes of HIV medication in one of the rooms," he said.
Yusoff stressed that police action was based solely on verified intelligence and lawful evidence, with no intent of discrimination.
"Our responsibility is to maintain public order and safeguard the moral values of society. I hope this explanation will dispel confusion and speculation circulating online.
"The public is urged not to spread unverified information and to continue cooperating with the authorities to preserve harmony in the state," he said.
It was reported that three men, including two students from tertiary education institutions, were fined a total of RM11,000 by the magistrate's court on Sunday for possessing obscene images and videos.
The trio was among those arrested by police during the raid at a house in Kemumin last month.
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