Police to crack down on human trafficking using drones

JOHOR BARU: Police will launch a crackdown on human trafficking syndicates who used drones to spy on the police and army while carrying out their illegal operations.

State police chief Comm Datuk Ayob Khan said they were aware of these syndicates’ activities and would track them down soon.

He said police would take stern action against anyone using drones in restricted areas for illegal activities.

He said this after attending the handing over ceremony of 34 Toyota Hilux pick-up trucks for Johor police at the state police headquarters here yesterday.

It was reported that the Malaysian Armed Forces had detected syndicates involved in smuggling food and illegal migrant workers using drones to spy on the authorities.

Army Western Field Commander Lt-Jen Datuk Muhammad Hafizuddeain Jantan was quoted in the media as saying that the tactic was to avoid getting arrested by authorities patrolling in Malaysian waters under Ops Benteng.

“Previously, smuggling syndicates carried out their activities in the wee hours, but they changed tactics to avoid being detected by the authorities, ” he said.

He added that they were aware that these syndicates used drones to track the security forces’ movements when they held a special operation, Ops Merpati, recently.

On a separate matter, Comm Ayob said police had recorded statements from the family members of a 29-year-old man who allegedly converted a Muslim woman.

The man had claimed this act in a three-minute video posted on social media.

“The man’s father and sister told police the suspect had left home a long time ago and they didn’t know his whereabouts, ” he said.

He urged the public not to take matters into their own hands and to let the authorities investigate the case.

He warned that police would act against anyone who made statements that could disrupt public harmony, regardless of who they were.

On the night of Feb 19, Johor police rushed to a house in Perjiranan Dato Onn after receiving information that a group of people were about to raid the premises where the suspect was believed to be hiding. However, it turned out that he was not there.

The man’s case, Comm Ayob said, was being investigated under Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act 1948, Section 298 and Section 505(c) of the Penal Code, as well as Section 233 of the Communication and Multimedia Act 1998.