PONTIAN: A woman who was feared missing along with her three children while returning from her hometown colluded with her boyfriend to extort RM2,000 from her husband.
Pontian police chief Superintendent Mohammad Shofee Tayib said they arrested the woman and her boyfriend in two separate raids last night.
The raids came after the woman's husband, a 41-year-old security guard lodged a police report on Friday night.
The husband said he had received a message from an unknown number demanding RM2,000 for the safe return of his wife and kids.
The man previously dropped his wife and kids off at a bus stop in Pekan Nanas so they could go to the woman's hometown in Kota Tinggi.
"However, his wife could not be contacted after that. When he called his mother-in-law, she told him that her daughter and granddaughter were not in Kota Tinggi.
"The next day, he received the threatening text message."
Shofee said acting on information, two raids were carried out in Kluang.
The woman was arrested at a hotel. Her children were with her.
"Her boyfriend, in his 40s, who is a businessman, was arrested in a house."
Both suspects tested negative for drugs and have been remanded until Wednesday.
The case is being probed under Section 385 of the Penal Code for extortion. If found guilty, they can be jailed for up to seven years. They can also be fined or whipped or both.
Previously, the victim's social media post asking for the public's help to locate his wife and kids, went viral.