Gaining from others’ pain

Cast adrift: Rohingya migrants (front from left) Muhammad Rubail, 14, Hasyik, 20, Najibul Hasan, 15, and Yusuf, 22, on a boat that drifted in Thai waters off the southern island of Koh Lipe in the Andaman sea. They were later rescued along with others by fishermen in Indonesian waters and are now at a confinement camp in Aceh. — AFP

KUALA LUMPUR: To society, he is seen as a philanthropist, often helping his less fortunate countrymen. But what is not known is that this former Myanmar refugee and his Malaysian business partner make millions from the misery of those they traffick.

They have been linked to the trafficking of Rohingyas and Bangladeshis into this country along the Malaysia-Thai border.