Student admits recruiting friends for cult practices

KULIM: A Form Two student has admitted recruiting 50 schoolmates, including 10 girls, and leading them into ritualistic worship in the black metal occult group.

The 14-year-old boy, who claimed to have seen Satan "face to face," also confessed to taking part in sacrificial rites, including drinking goat's blood, in a jungle here.

"I had witnessed the tearing of the Quran by senior group members but I did not do it as I felt guilty," he said after attending a motivation talk by state religious committee chairman Fadzil Hanafi at the school Tuesday.

The boy, who regretted his action, said he joined the group more than two years ago because of his love for heavy metal music.

Fadzil said he believed the group members were also involved in free sex although the boy denied any knowledge of it.

He said the students, in Forms One and Two, held their meetings in shopping complexes here and in Bukit Mertajam.

Fadzil said the school authorities identified the students three weeks ago following the media exposure.

In Penang, Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Dr Hilmi Yahaya said special sermons on the dangers of black metal cult practices would be delivered during Friday prayers.

Dr Hilmi, who is the State Islamic Religious Council chairman said yesterday the Islamic Religious Department will be writing the sermons.

"Other religious groups are also urged to give ceramah on the matter," he told reporters after a press conference on Penang's RM2.3bil second link project.

Dr Hilmi said the police had identified 500 youths and students here involved in the black metal cult and that the department had verified that the students were from about 30 schools.

"They are mostly from the mainland with 80% being bumiputras but the teachers and schools concerned may not be aware of their students' involvement."