KUALA LUMPUR – The Regent of Johor, Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, voiced his astonishment at the social media speculation linking him to the recent acid attack on Selangor striker Faisal Halim.
Tunku Ismail, who also owns the powerhouse team, Johor Darul Ta’zim, dismissed the allegations as false, stating that Faisal posed no threat to him or his team.
Instead, Tunku Ismail joined in condemning the attack, which left Faisal with fourth-degree burns.
“First and foremost, this kid (Faisal) is a good kid. I don’t know about his personal life, but whatever happened to him, we should condemn it. But what does it have to do with me?
“Some people say TMJ is the mastermind. If I want to target someone, I have a bigger target in this country, those who embezzle public funds, those responsible for the constitutional crisis, those involved in corruption. These are the real criminals who need to be dealt with, not football players.
“Faisal is just a footballer, and surely the people of Selangor can think rationally. What would I gain from targeting Faisal Halim?
“When we, JDT, played against Selangor last season and won 4-0, 4-0, 2-0, Faisal Halim was playing. So, Faisal Halim is not a threat to me.
“Faisal is a good player, he plays for the national team, and he’s a friendly person, but we don’t know much about his personal life. We don’t understand the motive behind the attack, yet people still want to implicate me,” said Tunku Ismail during the Johor youth meetup at Educity Sports Complex in Iskandar Puteri today.
On May 5, Faisal was attacked by two unknown individuals, resulting in the striker being rushed to the hospital and placed in the intensive care unit.
Although he has since undergone several skin graft surgeries and has been discharged from the hospital for recovery at home, no arrests have been made by the authorities.
The police have released a photofit of the suspects, estimated to be in their 30s, 165cm tall, of medium build, and with tan skin.
At the same time, Tunku Ismail also emphasised that he has never interfered in any police investigation into this case.
“The police are covering up all sorts of things. If I wanted to do something wrong, I wouldn’t involve the police. I don’t even trust my own police.
“I feel humiliated, it’s very weak to resort to such cowardly acts like throwing acid. If you want to eliminate someone, do it directly,” he added. – June 9, 2024