COPS PROBING COMPLAINT FROM DRINKS SHOP WORKER ABOUT VERBAL ABUSE BY CUSTOMER 

SHAH ALAM, March 26 (Bernama) -- The police are investigating an incident involving a female worker at a drinks and ice cream shop who was allegedly threatened and verbally abused by a customer at a shopping mall here yesterday.

Shah Alam District Police Chief ACP Mohd Iqbal Ibrahim said they received a report from the victim at 8.42 pm yesterday, alleging that the incident occurred during a payment transaction.

He said preliminary investigations revealed that the victim was approached by a local man and his family to purchase ice cream and a strawberry drink priced at RM6.50, for which he paid with a RM10 note.

"A misunderstanding arose when the victim requested a 50-sen coin from the suspect due to insufficient change in the cash register. The suspect is also believed to have made sarcastic remarks towards the victim.

"The situation escalated when the victim slammed the cash register shut, causing the suspect to feel dissatisfied and lash out at the victim with profanities and insults," he said in a statement today.

Mohd Iqbal said the incident was defused by the victim’s colleague, and the suspect reportedly left after completing the purchase.

Further investigations, he said,  found that the victim had sent CCTV footage of the shop to her family, which led to an irresponsible individual spreading the recording on social media platform TikTok.

He added that the case is being investigated under Section 504 of the Penal Code for intentionally insulting with the intent to provoke a breach of the peace, as well as Section 509 of the same code for insulting modesty.

"The case is also being investigated under Section 14 of the Minor Offences Act 1955 (cyberbullying), which carries a maximum fine of RM100, and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act, which provides for imprisonment of up to one year or a fine of up to RM50,000 if found guilty," he said.

He urged anyone with further information about the incident to assist in the investigation by contacting the Investigating Officer, Insp Siti Mahanira Mahat, at 017-64444895.

Earlier, a video went viral on TikTok with captions claiming that a female sales assistant was threatened and verbally abused by a customer, including with racial slurs, allegedly due to a misunderstanding during a sales transaction.

-- BERNAMA