CLEANING a property before renting it out is a good practice, and on rare occasions, one can stumble across an unexpected, potentially explosive surprise.
Is it true that a man cleaning an unoccupied house in Merlimau found a mortar shell there?
VERDICT:
TRUE
Jasin OCPD Deputy Supt Ahmad Jamil Radzi told national news agency Bernama that a 60mm inert dummy mortar shell used for shooting practice was discovered in an unoccupied rental house in Taman Bukit Tembakau, Merlimau, on Saturday (July 6).
He said the practice shell, which was confirmed to be non-explosive, was found by a 30-year-old neighbour.
The 65-year-old female house owner asked the neighbour to clean up personal belongings left behind by the previous tenant about seven months ago.
“During the process, the man discovered an object that looked like a mortar shell and sent a picture of the device to the house owner, who then filed a police report at 7.58pm on the same day.
“Acting on the report, officers from the Bomb Disposal Unit of the Melaka police headquarters rushed to the house at 8.45pm and confirmed the discovery of the mortar shell,” he said in a statement, Bernama reported.
The shell was then taken to the Melaka police headquarters for disposal.
According to DSP Ahmad Jamil, the single-storey terrace house was previously rented to a man working in the state from 2022 until he left in January.
The premises have not been rented to anyone else for nearly seven months.
He added that the house owner had not contacted the tenant since then, and the police are tracing the man to assist in further investigations. – Bernama
