PUTRAJAYA: A special operation by the National Registration Department (NRD) resulted in the arrest of 29 foreign workers, most of whom had fake MyKad that they claim to have bought for RM300 each.
One suspect, however, had in his possession a genuine one belonging to a Sabah man.
NRD director-general Datuk Ruslin Jusoh said the operation, codenamed Ops Pintas, was carried out at the Puchong industrial area on Monday (Feb 27) morning, following a tip-off from the public.
“Residents in the area had complained that workers in the industrial area had fake identity cards,” he told a press conference here on Tuesday (Feb 28).
During the operation, enforcement officers intercepted a van ferrying 14 people.
Ruslin said checks found that 13 of them had fake MyKad while one had the identity card of another person, also an offence under the law; all 29 had been remanded and would be charged soon.
“Following the arrests, a follow-up check led to the arrest of 15 others with fake MyKad.
“To avoid arrest, some tried to throw away their fake MyKad but our officers managed to stop them,” he added.
Ruslin said the 29 suspects, comprising three men and 26 women aged between 19 and 70, said they were from Indonesia and had bought the MyKad from an agent operating in the Klang Valley.
“They could not give us any description of the agent as they never met. After placing the 'order' for the fake identity card, arrangements were made for delivery by a runner.
“We believe this is the work of a syndicate that has been operating for some time, judging from how long those detained have had the fake MyKad in their possession,” he added.
Some said they had their fake IDs for as long as five years while others received them last month, he said.
