Bukit Aman police nab 165 people under 'Ops Pintas'

GEORGE TOWN: The Bukit Aman police have detained a total of 165 people, including suspected members of smuggling and human trafficking syndicates in a series of operations at three states.
In the week-long integrated operations dubbed "Ops Pintas" beginning last Thursday, the suspects were picked up in Perlis, Kedah and Penang.
A total of 158 of the suspects were Myanmar, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Cambodia and Thai nationals. The rest are locals.
Enforcement bodies from the immigration and customs departments, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency and the labour department were also involved in the operation.
Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk Seri Mohmad Salleh said the operations to combat smuggling and people trafficking in the region were due to intelligence sharing and cooperation from the aforementioned enforcement bodies.
He was speaking to reporters after launching the 2014 Enforcement Committee Meeting of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants (Atipsom) here today.
Mohmad said in the Aug 22 operation in Kedah, security forces detained 24 people, of whom 16 were Myanmar and Cambodian nationals who had been smuggled into the country through neighbouring countries, and seized more than RM9,000 from them.
"When they were detained, the 16 foreign nationals aged between 16 and 45, were found hiding in the boot of three private cars and two taxis.
"It is believed they were on the way to a house in Changloon that was used as a transit place for illegal immigrants.
"Seven local men and a Thai woman who made up the rest of the suspects were members of a smuggling and human trafficking syndicate active in Kedah," added Mohmad.
In the operation in Perlis, a total of 21 men and two women from Myanmar, aged between 14 and 46, who were trying to enter the country without valid documents were detained by the General Operations Force patrolling the country's borders.
Mohmad said a local couple and a Thai woman were detained in a raid on a house, believed to be transit for the foreigners in Padang Besar, Perlis, he said, adding that the police also seized 102kg of ketum leaves and various types of firecrackers and fireworks.
On Tuesday, he said about 172 foreigners were screened at 20 premises in Penang, and 118 of them were found with neither travel documents nor work permit.
"Those detained in that operation were Myanmar nationals comprising 65 men, 26 women and 27 children. They are believed to have been smuggled into the country to work illegally in Penang," he said.
"Based on our investigations, each foreigner who is smuggled into the country is sold to a third party at a price of up to RM6,000 to become prostitutes and labourers, whereas children are forced to beg," he said. – Bernama