Acting Kota Kinabalu police chief Syed Lot Syed Abdul Rahman said all the students – six girls and a boy aged 15 to 17 – were arrested around 3pm today.

“The boy is believed to have recorded the entire incident,” Berita Harian reported him as saying.

Syed Lot said the case is being investigated under Sections 147 and 506 of the Penal Code for rioting and criminal intimidation.

Earlier today, police said a 13-year-old schoolgirl was injured after being attacked by five other schoolgirls at 8am on May 22.

Syed Lot said the victim, who lodged a police report at 7.51am the next day, and the suspects are students from various schools around Kota Kinabalu and had become acquainted through a WhatsApp group.

The incident is believed to have stemmed from a misunderstanding in the WhatsApp group.

Investigations found that the victim was brought to the scene by two of the suspects before the remaining girls surrounded and assaulted her.

A video of the incident has since gone viral on social media.