KOTA KINABALU: A video clip showing a policeman hitting five people with a stick as they were believed to have violated the movement control order (MCO) is being circulated on social media.

The 27-second clip was believed to have been taken in Sabah’s east coast Kunak district on Wednesday (April 1).

The policeman was seen caning the five people, believed to be teens, once or twice, but hit a few times more on one person as he was laughing during the incident.

State deputy police commissioner Datuk Mazli Mazlan, when contacted, said they are investigating the matter.

“An internal investigation is ongoing, ” he said on Thursday (April 2), adding no official report had been lodged.

He said he was told that the policeman had instructed the five who were loitering at the area to go home before he continued with his patrol.

“However, when he returned to the same spot, the five people were still there and he again told them to leave, ” Mazli said.

They however laughed, and did not want to budge, so the policeman allegedly had to take more drastic actions, he said.

He said the teenagers were allowed to return home later.