The police raided 18 welfare homes in Selangor and two in Negeri Sembilan yesterday, with some of the 402 children rescued allegedly sodomised or taught to sexually assault others.
In a statement, Jais director Shahzihan Ahmad said two of the welfare homes raided yesterday were schools registered with the department.
He said overall, eight schools, suspected of being run by GISBH, are registered with Jais.
He said two of these schools have voluntarily shut down, two others have had their registrations expire, one school’s registration has been revoked and the remaining schools’ registration will expire in 2028.
“Jais is vigilant about any deviations from the true teachings of Islam in Selangor.
“Jais closely monitors the activities of GISBH members due to their links with the (banned) Al-Arqam and Rufaqa’ groups.
“We have not revoked the 2013 fatwa regarding the beliefs and practices of Al-Arqam and Rufaqa’.”
Shahzihan said one of the schools in the raid, SR Islam Integrasi Miftahul Hikmah, had been registered with Jais since 2015 and used the department’s curriculum.
No irregularities were detected during monitoring conducted at the school on Jan 13 and March 23, 2023, and July 23, he said.
The other school, Maahad Tahfiz Wal Ulum Al-Ghazaly, follows its own tahfiz curriculum and was registered with Jais in 2014.
He said Jais will take action against both schools.
Shahzihan also said Jais had reviewed 19 videos posted on social media by a group known as Pusat Kajian Ajaran Sesat (Pukas) and will also gather statements from individuals or other parties to complete their investigations.
The children rescued in the raids yesterday are believed to be victims of physical abuse, sexual abuse and abandonment.
While Inspector-General of Police Razarudin Husain had reportedly said the 20 welfare homes were linked to GISBH, the company has since denied operating the homes.
GISBH owns supermarkets, minimarkets, bakeries, 120 restaurants and other businesses in Malaysia, the Middle East, Europe and China, according to a 2022 report.
It previously said it had discarded its former image as the business wing of the Al-Arqam group and is currently positioned as a multinational company.
Police are probing yesterday’s raids under the Child Act 2001, Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 and the Penal Code.