Getting to the bottom of it: SAC Shahrum checking the pile of e-waste at the illegal factory in Machang Bubok, Penang.
BUKIT MERTAJAM: Eleven foreigners, including a Chinese national, were arrested in a raid at an illegal electronic waste (e-waste) processing factory in Machang Bubok.
General Operations Force (PGA) northern brigade commander Senior Asst Comm Shahrum Hashim said 48 jumbo-sized bags containing e-waste as well as processing machines worth RM21.83mil were seized in the raid by the PGA intelligence unit and Environment Department (DOE) on Thursday at about 7.30pm.
According to SAC Shahrum, the raid took place following two weeks of drone surveillance at an oil palm plantation’s premises.
Among the foreigners arrested was a woman from China, believed to be the factory manager.
SAC Shahrum said the others were a Bangladeshi man, three Myanmar men and six Myanmar women, all aged in their 30s and 40s.
He said the e-waste was imported from several countries and processed at the factory before being sent to another location for further processing.
“Investigations revealed that the factory initially operated legally to recycle plastic waste from 2016 until 2022.
“The factory owner is a local who later rented it out to another local individual,” he said, adding that it might have eventually been rented out to a Chinese national to conduct the illegal operation.
SAC Shahrum said the jumbo-sized bags seized contained, among others, copper.
“We discovered that the factory had purchased several e-waste processing machines within the past three months,” he said at a press conference yesterday.
SAC Shahrum said the scattered waste poses a serious hazard, especially during rainfall, which would spread potentially harmful solvents into the environment.
He added that the foreign nationals were detained under the Immigration Act for not having valid travel documents, while the Chinese national had an expired passport.
He said the factory was found to be in violation of the Environmental Quality Act as well as the Local Government Act 1976.
SAC Shahrum said all the foreign nationals would be handed over to the Immigration Department for further action.
State DOE director Norazizi Adinan said the seizure was the largest in Penang so far.
“The e-waste and dross (dust containing heavy metals) will be sent to the exhibit storage facility in Gopeng until the case is resolved,” he said.
He said the samples will also be sent to the Chemistry Department for analysis to determine the waste composition.
