By Lian Cheng
KUCHING, April 18: This Gary Leneiker is not the Gary Lineker of football fame!
Gary Leneiker Sulai, 32, a local resident of Miri, is wanted by the Miri police to assist in the investigation of a criminal case under Section 148 of the Penal Code for the offence of rioting.
After DayakDaily published the story, some netizens began leaving amusing comments amid condemnation as the name Gary Leneiker reminded many of the older generation of the former England soccer team captain Gary Lineker, who was renowned for his good looks and prowess on the football field.
It is suspected that Gary Leneiker was named after Gary Lineker, except the it was wrongly spelt. This is quite common in Sarawak, where many parents name their children after someone they admire but unfortunately with some misspellings.
Lineker led the England national football team in the 1986 and 1990 World Cup where on both occasions, the team managed to enter semi-finals.
He was the top scorer for 1986 World Cup with six goals, resulting in him winning the Golden Boot and becoming the first Englishman to do so.
After retiring from professional football, Lineker became a football pundit and has been a sports presenter for BBC and other news channels.
As Sarawak’s Gary Leneiker is a wanted person-of-interest, the similarity in the names drew several mischievous comments amid some condemnation.
The following are some of the comments taken from DayakDaily’s Facebook page:
“Bore the name of the English player in vain. Spoil the family name of Lineker.”
“Only serves to bring shame to Gary.”
“Thought it was former England player. Had a shock.”
“Only serves to shame the real Gary Leneiker.”
“May be he has returned to England.”
“His (Gary Lineker’s) son? What is he doing in Sarawak.”
“Failed penalty kick and caused England to lose, that was why he is wanted.”
Meanwhile, Miri District Police Chief ACP Alexson Naga Chabu urges members of the public who have any information concerning the whereabouts of the individual named Gary Leneiker to come forward or contact the investigating officer, Inspector Zulaokja Mohd Anuar at 019-912 0362 or 085-433730. — DayakDaily
