The three men and five women had their charges read separately to them before shariah judge Zainal Abidin Kusmin.

They were charged with making false claims on Telegram chat groups claiming that their leader, Harun Ismail, is God, and conspiring to make similar false claims through the same app.

The charges, under Section 8B and Section 46B of the Syariah Criminal Offences (Selangor) Enactment 1995, carry a maximum fine of RM5,000, imprisonment for up to three years or both, upon conviction.

Zainal allowed bail for all the accused with two local sureties and set the case mention for Monday.

Selangor Islamic religious department (JAIS) director Shahzihan Ahmad said in a statement the eight were arrested during a raid on a house at Bandar Baru Salak Tinggi, Sepang, at about 2.30pm yesterday.