KUALA LUMPUR: A syndicate promoting the sexual services of foreign women for between RM400 and RM1,200 on social media was busted during a raid on three vice dens in the city.
Forty-eight foreign women, believed to be prostitutes, were among the 52 people detained during the raid on Friday night.
Immigration deputy director-general (Operation) Jafri Embok Taha said that with the raid, the syndicate behind the vice activities was busted.
“We detained 48 foreign women – 32 Indonesians, 13 Thais and three Vietnamese – along with an Afghanistan man.
“We also detained two local men, aged 35 and 44, who worked as caretakers at the premises and a 34-year-old local man who was the transporter,” he said.
Eight of the Thai women detained had valid social visit passes while the remaining foreigners did not have any travel documents or passes, he said.
“We also seized various items, including condoms, eight Thai passports, RM300 cash, towels, CCTV equipment and a car,” he added.
Jafri said the syndicate would promote the services of the women by uploading their photos on Telegram and WhatsApp.
“Chosen women will be sent to a specific hotel or location based on the customer’s preference.
“Each customer is charged between RM400 and RM1,200 based on the packages offered, with the payments made either in cash or online before the women are sent to them,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Investigation showed the syndicate had been operating for about a year, Jafri said.
“We conducted surveillance and intelligence gathering for about two weeks before carrying out the raids,” he said.
The foreigners were detained at the Immigration depot in Semenyih, he said.
In Kuala Terengganu, police detained nine women in connection with prostitution activities in three operations conducted last year.
State police chief Datuk Mazli Mazlan said in May 2023, police nabbed two local women for prostitution in Kuala Terengganu.
“In another case involving a syndicate, seven foreign women – two from Indonesia, one from Laos and four from Thailand – were detained at three budget hotels here on Dec 28 last year,” he was quoted by Bernama as saying after the Terengganu Police Contingent Headquarters monthly assembly here yesterday.
All detained foreigners had valid travel permits but three were found to have overstayed.
Mazli said investigations found that these immoral activities were also prevalent in Kemaman and Dungun and had begun to spread to tourist areas, adding that a special task force had been set up.
