PUTRAJAYA: The Immigration Department busted a human trafficking syndicate involved in smuggling in illegal immigrants during an undercover operation at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (KLIA 2) on Dec 9.
Immigration Department director-general Datuk Seri Khairul Dzaimee Daud in a statement released on Tuesday (Dec 13) said five suspects, aged between 31 and 49 were detained, including two Immigration officers who were believed to have colluded with the syndicate.
"The five who were detained comprised two Indonesian women who had just arrived, an Indonesian man believed to be the agent, and two Immigration officers who colluded with the syndicate and the agent to facilitate the entry process of the illegal immigrants," he said.
He said the modus operandi of the syndicate was to allow the agent to make arrangements for the arrival of illegal immigrants who had been allegedly blacklisted for previous offences and the immigration officer at the counter stamps their entry paper for a fee of between RM1,000 and RM2,000 per illegal immigrant.
The illegal immigrants were later accompanied by the agent to their intended place of employment to work illegally but there would be no record of their entry in the immigration department’s system.
Khairul Dzaimee said the two Immigration officers and the agent were detained for investigations under the Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 while the two women would be investigated under Section 6(3) Immigration Act 1959/63 (Act 155).
He said the two immigration officers would be remanded for seven days starting Dec 10, to facilitate investigations while all the foreign nationals were taken to the Putrajaya Immigration office.
"JIM will continue to curb human trafficking and entry of illegal immigrants. We will not compromise such offences even if it involves immigration officers," he said. - Bernama
