PETALING JAYA, MALAYSIA: Police have detained a foreigner for sending an SMS claiming that he had abducted five-year-old Sharlinie Mohd Nashar and demanding RM25,000 for her release.

They picked up the 26-year-old IT expert at 2pm on Saturday in Kajang after the person he forwarded the message to informed the police.

Sharlinie went missing after going to a playground near her PJS2 home in Taman Medan on Jan 9.

Selangor CID chief Senior Asst Comm II Mazlan Mansor said the man, who has been in the country with valid documents since Jan 29, had sent the SMS claiming that he was keeping the girl in Sabah.

"The person who received the SMS contacted the police and we picked up the suspect immediately," he said here yesterday.

SAC Mazlan said the man would be remanded until Wednesday.

He cautioned the public not to send false messages about the girl's disappearance.

"What surprises me is that people are still not scared of being arrested for doing such things even though we have taken action against a maid from Johor and a boy from Perak.

"We are not going to warn people anymore but pick them up immediately and throw the book at them," he added.