KOTA BARU: Immigrant smugglers are now changing their tactic by bringing in small numbers of illegals to pull the wool over the eyes of the enforcement authorities, according to Ninth Battalion General Operations Force (PGA9) commanding officer Supt Nor Azizan Yusof.
He said foreign immigrants were now ferried in smaller vehicles such as Honda Jazz, Perodua Myvi or Proton Wira and no longer used multi-purpose vehicles (MPV).
However, the tactic was detected by the security agency on the border after five Myanmar nationals and a local resident were detained in front of Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Rantau Panjang, Pasir Mas yesterday at 7am.
In the incident, the PGA9 Strike Force team on patrol spotted a vehicle driven by a man in a suspicious manner in front of the school.
‘’The driver tried to escape by speeding off in the car which went out of control and crashed in front of a house nearby,’’ he said when contacted, here today.
Nor Azizan said investigation found the driver, a 42-year-old local man from Rantau Panjang, was ferrying five Myanmar nationals including a woman, aged 30 to 40 years, without any valid travel documents.
‘’An inspection of the car revealed fake registration numbers and road tax. All the foreigners were handed over to the Rantau Panjang police station for further action,’’ he said.
He said the case was investigated under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 (ATIPSOM), Section 6(3) of the Immigration Act 1959/1963 and Section 29(1) of the Minor Offences Act 1955.
In another development, Nor Azizan said PGA9 also seized 446 kilogrammes of glutinous rice worth RM1,360 which were suspected to have been smuggled in on Sunday. - Bernama
