An unnamed businessman, 23, is facing a possible 20-year prison sentence and a $11,000 fine after a 17-second clip of him carrying a baby and putting a vape in its mouth went viral. The man was seen placing the vape into its mouth as a woman was heard laughing in the background. He's arrested by police in Malaysia.
Man Who Put Vape In A Baby's Mouth Faces 20 Years In Jail
By
Zainab Pervez in
Bizarre
On 10th August 2022
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A man who "jokingly" placed an e-cigarette into a baby's mouth for a viral social media video has been arrested. The unnamed businessman, 23 was detained yesterday (August 8) by police in Johor, Malaysia, according to North Johor Baru district police commander Rupiah Abd Wahid. He is facing a possible 20-year prison sentence and a $11,000 fine.
Rupiah explained that the baby was in a restaurant with its mother, her sister and the man - reportedly a friend of the sister - at the time of the incident.
"All of a sudden, the man who was carrying the baby had jokingly placed the non-functioning e-cigarette into the baby’s mouth," the commander said.
"This was recorded by the mother’s sister who posted it on social media and it went viral."
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The 17-second video went viral on Friday (August 5). The man was seen carrying the baby and placing the vape into its mouth before pulling it away to make it look like the child is smoking.. A woman could be heard laughing in the background.
At no point in the video did the toddler inhale any fumes from the device.
The commander went on to explain that on 6 August, after the clip went viral, the mother filed a police report and shortly after an investigation was launched, police arrested the man.
Police will apply for a remand order under Malaysia's Child Act tomorrow (August 10), relating to him exposing children under care to danger. If found guilty he is facing a possible 20-year prison sentence, a RM50,000 ($11,218) fine or both. The police commander also urged the public to be responsible with what they post on social media.
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People on Twitter have reacted angrily to the video.
One user who posted the video and reported the incident to authorities wrote: "Apparently the baby's mother was with them that night. Why not stop the man's actions?"
Another wrote: "We have a child. The first thing my husband changed was to stop smoking... So parents, please don't be stupid. It's a pity for the child."
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A third commented: "Even if the baby didn't suck on the vape, do you know what's inside? If you use the pod/vape, don't share it with other people. Do you know how many germs are stored in it?"
While a fourth wrote: "Wow, my father's wife had a child and he stopped smoking. Not even once did he touch or come close to cigarettes because he wanted to take care of his child's health."