The water discharged from the pond is believed to have caused odour pollution which halted the Rantau Panjang and Sungai Selangor Phases 1, 2 and 3 water treatment plant (LRA) operations on Dec 7.

Over 850 areas in Selangor suffered water supply disruptions when the treatment plants were halted.

Selangor Criminal Investigation Department chief Fadzil Ahmat said the five individuals, aged between 28 and 50, were detained during a raid in Bukit Sentosa, Hulu Selangor, on Tuesday.

He said that the 50-year-old owner of the fish pond located in Serendah, Selangor, is believed to have emptied the pond, leading to the pollution.

“Further investigation also found that the farm has been operating without a licence for the past three years while all the suspects were remanded for a day starting yesterday.

“Police will apply for a remand extension at the Hulu Selangor Magistrate’s Court to complete the investigation,” he said in a statement.

Fadzil said that the case was being investigated under Section 430 of the Penal Code for committing mischief that resulted in water disruptions.

Selangor exco member in charge of the environment Hee Loy Sian said that initial investigation detected a foul odour believed to be of dead fish in the samples of raw water obtained from Sungai Selangor.