December 28 2025, 08:15 
A raid by Malaysian authorities on an alleged “gay spa” in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur late last month saw over 200 individuals arrested, but ultimately yielded no convictions under colonial-era prohibitions on “carnal knowledge” between men.
Local police carried out the joint raid with the Federal Territories Islamic Religious Department on suspicion that the men-only spa was “promoting homosexuality.” Engaging in same-sex acts in Malaysia carries penalties of up to 20 years in
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The country is majority-Muslim.
The spa had been under surveillance for several weeks, the South China Morning Post reported, before authorities burst in to arrest patrons on November 28. Police detained 201 men, ages 19 to 60, including 15 foreign nationals.
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Investigators claimed they found condoms and other evidence indicating the men were engaging in illicit same-sex activity.
Shortly after the joint operation, videos of the raid went viral online, revealing a parade of men, many wearing only white spa towels. A list of individuals identified in the footage followed, circulating on social media. It’s unclear who leaked the police video or who compiled and published the list.
A similar raid was executed 24 hours later at a sauna in Penang, just south of the country’s border with Thailand.
Both cases were prosecuted under Malaysian law that criminalizes “carnal intercourse against the order of nature” and “outrages on decency.” The statute has been used in a broader government crackdown targeting LGBTQ+ individuals, groups, businesses, and gatherings that “promote” homosexuality.
The government also invoked Section 372 of the Malaysian penal code, which criminalizes the exploitation of people for prostitution, including selling, hiring, or restraining a person to force or coerce them into sex work.
Prosecutors, however, came up empty-handed.
When presented with the evidence in both cases, a judge ruled that police failed to show anyone at the spas had been exploited or coerced into “prostitution, or abnormal sexual activity.”
The men were released, and none will face criminal charges.
103 Muslim detainees, however, are still being investigated for sodomy under Sharia-based law. Their fate is uncertain.
The men identified on social media, meanwhile, face the stigma attached to publicly outing them as potentially gay.
“The leak and viral spread of this sensitive data is a serious breach of privacy and dignity,” Malaysian human rights group Legal Dignity said in a statement. The public exposure “puts detainees and their families at risk of discrimination, extortion, job or housing loss, and long-term stigma.”
In one example of the public shaming’s effects, Malaysia’s Education Ministry has removed teachers who were arrested from classrooms and launched its own investigations.
One unintended consequence of the mass arrest was a public show of support at the police station where the detainees were held. Dozens of supporters from the LGBTQ+ community turned up to offer legal advice, food, information, and support for those held and their families.
Local queer activist Numan Afifi praised the spontaneous mobilization, joking, “Who would have thought KL’s first Pride march would happen right in front of Dang Wangi Police Stn?”
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