Malaysian company accused of mass child abuse admits 'one or two' cases of sodomy

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The head of a Malaysian conglomerate accused of running old people's homes where hundreds of children were allegedly abused admitted on Saturday that there had been “one or two cases of sodomy” at the homes, but denied allegations of widespread misconduct.

Malaysian police arrested 171 suspects, including religious teachers and caregivers, and rescued more than 400 children after raiding 20 charity shelters on Wednesday.

This is believed to be the worst case of its kind in Malaysia in decades. Police suspect that the victims – aged between one and 17 – were victims of sexual and physical assault.

They are also said to have been forced by nursing home staff to abuse each other.

The CEO of Global Ikhwan Service and Business Holding (GISBH), which is linked to a banned Islamic sect, said there had been “one or two cases of sodomy” at the home.

GISBH had previously rejected all allegations of abuse and stated that it did not operate the nursing homes.

But in a video posted on the company's Facebook page on Saturday, CEO Nasiruddin Ali acknowledged that the company had violated some laws, but did not provide details.

He questioned the police raids and said the authorities should have discussed the matter with the company before taking action, stressing that the children in the charity homes “did not know the whole story”.

“There have been one or two cases of sodomy, but why are they all being lumped together?” he said.

Police Inspector General Razarudin Husain said on Friday that his department was “working towards” more raids and arrests as part of the investigation into GISBH.

Investigations and health checks have so far shown that at least 13 minors have been sexually abused, Razarudin said at a press conference.

The GISBH has long been controversial due to its links to the now-defunct Al-Arqam sect and is viewed critically by the religious authorities of the predominantly Muslim country.

The United Nations Children's Fund stressed that the victims were exposed to “unimaginable horror”.

The children “will require long-term professional medical and psychosocial support,” said Robert Gass, UNICEF representative in Malaysia.