Man believed to have placed e-cigarette into baby's mouth arrested

JOHOR BAHRU - A man believed to had placed an e-cigarette (vape) into a baby's mouth during an incident at a restaurant in Bandar Baru Uda, here recently, was arrested today.

Johor Bahru Utara (JBU) district police chief Rupiah Abd Wahid said the 23-year-old businessman was detained at the Crime Investigation Department of the JBU district police headquarters at 12.45 am.

She said the arrest was made after her team received a police report lodged by the seven-month-old baby girl's mother on Aug 6. The mother claimed the man was her sister's friend.

"According to the complainant, at the time of the incident she and the baby were with her sister and the man at a restaurant.

"All of a sudden, the man who was carrying the baby had jokingly placed the non-functioning e-cigarette into the baby's mouth and this was recorded by the mother’s sister who posted it on social media and it went viral.

She said following the report, police opened an investigation paper and a remand application for the man involved will be made tomorrow to enable further investigations.

Rupiah said if found guilty, the man could be sentenced to a maximum jail term of 20 years or a RM50,000 fine imposed, or both.

She said the public is advised to not come out with any untrue comments or information as well as to be responsible social media users in order to avoid causing nuisance to others.

Earlier, a 17-second viral video showed a man placing a vape (device) into the mouth of a baby that he was carrying. The video received criticism and reaction from various parties. - BERNAMA