Nine Malaysian Paramilitary Members Killed in Truck Collision

At least nine members of a Malaysian paramilitary unit were killed on Tuesday when their transport truck collided with a lorry, according to emergency services and media reports.

The tragic incident occurred while the unit was returning to Ipoh, a city in northern Malaysia, after providing security at a Hindu festival, as confirmed by Perak Emergency Services.

“A police truck collided with a gravel-carrying lorry, trapping three victims at the front of the vehicle and 15 others in the back,” the emergency services statement said.

Initial reports indicated that eight members of Malaysia’s Federal Reserve Unit, along with the driver of the vehicle, were killed. A ninth paramilitary member later succumbed to their injuries, according to news reports.

“Two others remain in critical condition, and a further seven are being treated for moderate injuries,” said Bakri Zainal Abidin, the Perak police chief, in an interview with the New Straits Times.

The 40-year-old driver of the lorry has been arrested in connection with the incident.

Malaysia suffers from one of the highest road accident death tolls in Southeast Asia, with a fatal crash occurring almost every two hours, reported The Star newspaper in March.