Busted: Another human-trafficking syndicate targeting Bangladeshis

PUTRAJAYA: The Immigration Department has busted another human smuggling syndicate, this time led by a Bangladeshi national known as “Abang Bangla”.

The 43-year-old was arrested together with a Malaysian man during a operation early Friday.

Immigration director-general Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali said after weeks of surveillance, his officers raided a house in Shah Alam and found 50 Bangladeshis occupying it.

“These people, mostly blacklisted by the department, had travelled from Dhaka to Jakarta, Indonesia and then took a boat to enter Malaysia illegally.

“The information that they gave us was that the drop-off point is Sekinchan,” he said at a press conference here.

Mustafar said some of the Bangladeshis, aged between 20 and 45, could not fly into Malaysia as they were blacklisted.

“They were here previously and we caught them for working illegally or with expired permits. That's why they were blacklisted and could not enter Malaysia through official means,” he added.

Cash amounting to RM13,000 was also seized at the scene.