THE man who stormed into the Ulu Tiram police station and killed two personnel and injured a third cop, is said to be reclusive like his family, who lived in isolation from other residents, according to reports.

The man who was shot dead lived in a fenced-off private area in Kg Sg Tiram.

Checks of the family’s house in the kampung, which is located about 7km from the police station, found that the house was in a settlement with 10 other homes.

The location is close to Madrasah Luqmanul Hakim, which was a haunt for the leaders of the JI extremist group “once upon a time”.

One of the residents interviewed, Fauzi Faizal, 39, said the suspect, who is understood to have four siblings, did not go to school and was educated by his father, who is also a member of Jemaah Islamiyah.

“It is believed that the siblings (of the suspect) also did not receive formal education and are schooled by their own father, possibly (indoctrinated) with extremist teachings,” Fauzi told national news agency Bernama.

Fauzi, who is also a Tiram Zone Johor Baru city council member, said the settlement is believed to have existed for more than 20 years and was inhabited by several other families.

He said people in the settlement also did not mingle with other villagers.

“Residents worried, shocked that the ‘killer’ resided in our midst, but we have confidence that the police will maintain order and prevent future incidence,” he said.

“The residents are worried, but I am confident police will take action to maintain peace and harmony in the village,” said Ulu Tiram village chief Shazrul Idham Abd Aziz, 41.

In the 2.45am ambush on the police station on Friday, three people were confirmed dead: two constables aged 22 and the 21-year-old attacker who was gunned down, while another policeman suffered injuries.

A raid was carried out on the assailant’s home in Ulu Tiram. It led to the arrest of five members of his family, aged from 19 to 62, while two students from higher learning institutions were also detained.

Inspector-General of Police Razarudin Husain said the man is believed to have been a member of Jemaah Islamiyah.

Jemaah Islamiyah was an Indonesia-based militant group dedicated to the establishment of an Islamic state in Southeast Asia. It was founded by Muslim preacher Abu Bakar Bashir in the early 1990s.

The group was linked to al-Qaeda and was responsible for the 2002 Bali bombing. – May 18, 2024.