KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Immigration Department carried out an operation called “Op Gelombang V” in Kota Baru, Kelantan, last Wednesday, resulting in the dismantling of a human trafficking syndicate and the arrest of 51 illegal immigrants. Among those arrested were 43 Indian nationals (39 men and 4 women), 2 Pakistani men, and 6 Thai nationals (2 women and 4 boys), according to Director-General Datuk Ruslin Jusoh. The operation took place at a budget hotel that served as a transit house for illegal immigrants, and the arrests occurred at 10:20 am. Additionally, five local men, including the hotel owner, two caretakers, and two transporters, were also apprehended as suspected members of the syndicate. The age of the illegal immigrants ranged from 2 to 60 years old.
All the arrested illegal immigrants have been transferred to the Tanah Merah Immigration Depot, while the five local men have been placed under six-day remand to assist with the investigation. During the operation, the immigration authorities seized RM5,300 in cash, 42 passports allegedly issued by the Indian government, and four vehicles believed to have been used for transporting the illegal immigrants to the transit location.
Ruslin explained that the syndicate had been targeting Indian nationals seeking to enter Malaysia illegally, charging each person between RM8,000 and RM10,000 for their services. The syndicate’s modus operandi involved smuggling the immigrants through a neighboring country via illegal routes at the border. Subsequently, the immigrants were transported to transit locations using local vehicles before being sent to specific destinations, he added.
KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Immigration Department crippled a human trafficking syndicate and arrested 51 illegal immigrants in an operation codenamed “Op Gelombang V” in Kota Baru, Kelantan, last Wednesday.
Its director-general Datuk Ruslin Jusoh said those arrested consisted of 43 Indian nationals, comprising 39 men and four women, two Pakistani men and six Thai nationals, comprising two women and four boys.
He said the illegal immigrants, aged between two and 60 years, were arrested at 10.20am in a raid conducted at a budget hotel which was used by the syndicate as a transit house for illegal immigrants.
“Also arrested were five local men, consisting of the hotel owner, two caretakers of the premises and two transporters. All of them, aged between 23 and 57 years, are suspected to be members of the syndicate,” he said in a statement Saturday (Sept 16).
All the illegal immigrants have been sent to the Tanah Merah Immigration Depot while the five local men are on remand for six days to assist in the investigation.
Ruslin said the immigration also confiscated RM5,300 in cash, 42 passports purportedly issued by the Indian government and four vehicles suspected of being used to transport the illegal immigrants to the transit location.
He said the syndicate, believed to have been active since the middle of last year, targets illegal immigrants from India wanting to enter the country illegally by charging each individual between RM8,000 and RM10,000.
“The syndicate’s modus operandi is to smuggle the immigrants through a neighboring country using illegal routes at the border.
“These illegal immigrants are then transported using local transporter vehicles to the transit locations before they are sent to specific locations,” he added. – Bernama
Credit: The Star : News Feed
