The 11 accused arrived at the sessions court compound this morning under heavy security from the police's criminal investigation department. (Bernama pic)SEPANG: Eleven men were brought before the sessions court here today on charges of being members of an organised crime syndicate known as the Vinod Gang.No plea was recorded after the charges were read before judge Husna Dzulkifly, as the case falls under the jurisdiction of the High Court.All 11 men are accused of being members of the syndicate in Bandar Rimbayu, Telok Panglima Garang, between April 2024 and June 27, 2026, under Section 130V(1) of the Penal Code.They are Muhammad Vinod Saktivel, 30, believed to be the group's leader; M Puvaneswaran, 34; Lawrence Alfred, 34; G Sanggeethan, 31; M Naviedran, 29; S Sri Tharan, 27; M Surenthar, 27; NAN Viknesvaran, 27; JM Kishaan, 24; R Shervinkumar, 23; and T Saarvin, 21.Deputy public prosecutors Chow Siang Kong and Muhammad Syahrezal Shukri appeared for the prosecution, while the accused were represented by lawyers T Mishant and S Devan.The court set Sept 14 for the next mention of the case.The 11 accused arrived at the court compound around 9am under heavy security from the police's criminal investigation department (CID).They were arrested on June 23 and 24 through Op Rapido, a joint operation led by Bukit Aman CID in collaboration with its Selangor counterpart.In a statement yesterday, Bukit Aman CID director M Kumar said the group was believed to have been active since 2023 and involved in gang robberies, attempted murder, armed rioting, causing injury with weapons and mischief.He said the group's modus operandi was to commit armed robberies using machetes or sharp weapons, targeting residential premises to gain material profit, power or influence.He said their arrests had solved 21 cases and crippled an active armed gang robbery syndicate in Selangor.Police are tracking down five other individuals believed to be members of the group, who remain at large.
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