Asia Pacic 6 Islamic State suspects arrested in Johor for planning attacks on places of worship A terror suspect arrested in Johor. (Photo: Royal Malaysia Police) 24 Mar 2018 06:16PM (Updated: 24 Mar 2018 06:40PM) Bookmark KUALA LUMPUR: Seven suspected terrorists have been arrested in Johor and Sabah, said Malaysian police on Saturday (Mar 24). Six of them, Malaysians from an Islamic State cell, were arrested in Johor for allegedly planning attacks on non-Muslim places of worship and plotting to kill police personnel, while an Abu Sayyaf member was detained in Sabah, said the police in a statement. The men were arrested in multiple operations between Feb 27 and Mar 15. In the rst operation, police arrested a 37-year-old man believed to be the mastermind of the planned attacks on places of worship in Johor Bahru. He also actively recruited new militants, said Inspector- General of Police Mohamad Fuzi Harun. "The second suspect is a 49-year-old security guard and adviser to the terror cell," he said, adding that the suspect was in charge of ensuring cell members kept their activities secret. He also gave orders to kill any member who leaked secrets. A security guard suspected of involvement in terror activities. (Photo: Royal Malaysia Police) Advertisement The third suspect was a 30-year-old security guard who was tasked with acquiring rearms from another country. He also scouted several places of worship across Johor Bahru. The suspects planned to escape to a neighbouring country to seek refuge with another terror group after carrying out their attacks, said the police chief, without naming the country. Three other members of the same cell were arrested in follow-up operations. One of them was a 25-year-old waiter who had been ordered to kidnap and kill police personnel. Two other suspects, aged 23 and 22, were arrested on Mar 1 and were working as janitors in Singapore. One of them acted as the intermediary in the purchase of rearms for the cell. As for the Abu Sayyaf member who was arrested on Mar 15, he is said to be a trusted lieutenant to group leader Furuji Indama and has links to Malaysian militant Mahmud Ahmad. The Filipino man, who is wanted by the Philippines for his involvement in a a kidnap-for-ransom syndicate, is also an expert in making improvised explosive devices. The police chief added that the suspect had planned to carry out several attacks in Sabah and was responsible for making the state a safe haven for terror groups from the Philippines. Source: CNA/ad Tagged Topics Malaysia (http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/topic/Malaysia) Bookmark terrorism (http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/topic/terrorism) Islamic State (http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/topic/Islamic-State) Get the Channel NewsAsia newsletter in your inbox Advertisement 15 Comments Sort by Top Add a comment... Km Tham · Yet to Register Ex them all 123 Like · Reply · 1d Jasveer Jurrah Well done Malaysia.... Well done... Now that is the way to do it... Intelligence gathering... In Singapore we just find young kids pretending to be radical and throw them under section some shit or others.. Like · Reply · 11 · 1d Ho Shigure · Random Employee at Who Would Win If they didn't pretend to be radical, they wouldn't have gotten shit. Like · Reply · 23h Jasveer Jurrah Ho Shigure .. don't be sour grapes, Intelligence service is the way to go not like Singapore where they can predict your "radicalization"... Like · Reply · 2 · 21h Load 10 more comments Facebook Comments Plugin Asia Pacic Malaysia tables fake news Bill, moots dealing with offences outside the country A general view at Parliament House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (Photo: AFP/Mohd Rasfan) By Sumisha Naidu (/author/7539840) 26 Mar 2018 11:41AM (Updated: 26 Mar 2018 12:55PM) READ FULL STORY Bookmark Copyright© Mediacorp 2018. Mediacorp Pte Ltd. All rights reserved. .