Elderly Malaysian man collapses and dies while trying to save pet from municipal dogcatchers
- Law Sei Kiew, 85, collapsed and fell into a drain in Bentong during tussle with officials, who placed a noose around the dog and tried to drag it away
- Bentong MP Young Syefura Othman urged local authorities in the country to clearly indicate the process of handling stray dog-catching operations immediately
An 85-year-old Malaysian man died following an incident where he was allegedly involved in a tug of war with Bentong Municipal Council dogcatchers who came to remove his pet dog.
Law Sei Kiew, lived alone with his seven-year-old mixed breed dog in his double-storey house in Taman Saga in Pahang state’s Bentong town.
According to a neighbour, Chan Poh Loong, 55, the incident happened at 5pm (local time) on Wednesday when a group of council dogcatchers came to the housing area.
“The dog was inside the compound, but the gate was not locked.
“The dog catchers went near the gate, and the dog came out,’’ said Chan.
He said Law was very attached to the dog, which he had raised since it was a puppy.
It was never allowed to wander around.
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Apparently, the dogcatchers had placed a noose around the dog, and when Law heard the commotion, he rushed out of his house and pleaded for it to be released.
“The dog catchers restrained the dog with the loop and pole and tried to drag it away, but Law held on to the pole, refusing to let go,’’ he said.
A struggle ensued, with the dogcatchers also refusing to budge.
However, Law then collapsed and fell into a nearby drain.
An ambulance was called, but Law was pronounced dead by the paramedics who had tried to revive him.
As for the dog, Chan said, it was still at Law’s home, although its future was uncertain as Law’s children had returned to their respective homes in other states after the funeral.
Law’s son declined to speak to the media, saying that the family wanted to be left alone.
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Bentong MP Young Syefura Othman, who visited the family of the deceased and expressed her condolences, urged the Local Government Development Ministry and all local authorities in the country to clearly indicate the process of handling stray dog-catching operations immediately.
“This is to prevent unwanted incidents such as disagreements that can become worse and lead to altercations between local authorities’ enforcers and residents or individuals who feed stray dogs,” she said in a statement.
When contacted, Bentong Municipal Council’s Public Health Department head Norizam Saad said the council had made a police report on the matter.
He declined to elaborate, saying he was currently away attending a course and had not received full information regarding the incident.
