Animal lovers expressed sadness and anger over the news of a security guard bashing a street dog to death with a heavy wooden bat in a popular mall’s grounds.
According to a Lye Jin Kit, a resident who lives near the mall, the incident happened at about midnight on Saturday, 2nd April 2016. “My family and I heard a dog howling three times from the car park of the mall with the third and final howl being the most pitiful,” he said.
Lye then rushed to the car park with his brother and parents, and saw a foreign security guard standing over the dying dog with the bat still in his hand. At that time, the dog was still alive but was bleeding from the head and its eyes had also turned red. As they scolded the guard, the supervisor came to the scene, took the bat away, and said that he did not instruct the guard to beat the dog.
Lye believed the dog could have taken shelter at the entrance of the mall as it was raining heavily at the time.
According to several netizens who commented on the Malaysian Dogs Deserve Better’s Facebook post, the incident happened at Cheras Leisure Mall. The news received flak from netizens, with many calling for the mall to take responsibility and charge the security guard for the criminal act (of cruelty to animals).
When contacted by The Star Online, a mall employee who was on duty said the guard belonged to a private company hired by the mall management to provide security services.
Cheras Leisure Mall has since released an official statement via their Facebook page to confirm that their management is currently looking into the matter. “We are and always have been strictly against the animal cruelty and we are disappointed to learn about the incident. Our team is currently investigating to find out what had really happened. We sincerely appreciate your patience and please rest assured that necessary action will be taken against the person found responsible for the said violence,” the mall said.
The statement went on to add, “At the moment, the said person has been suspended from his job until further notice.”
No one really knows what made the security guard turn violent but is work suspension enough? Should he be charged under the Animal Act to ensure that his actions won’t be repeated in the future? Do you think that security service companies should start screening their employees (urine test, psychological assessment) before sending them out on jobs? Let us know what you think in the comments box below.
Sources: The Star Online, Malaysian Dogs Deserve Better Facebook page, Straits Times, FMT / Featured image via Malaysian Dogs Deserve Better Facebook page.
