JOHOR BARU: A Bangladeshi national has broken his left leg after jumping into a 10-foot drain trying to evade arrest during an Immigration Department raid at a construction site here.
When the raid began, many foreign workers were seen fleeing the construction site at Taman Suria by jumping into the drain, while some even dashed across a busy road, endangering their own lives and those of passing motorists.
It is learnt that the injured immigrant, who is in his 30s, shouted in pain when Immigration Department personnel pulled him out of the drain.
Johor Immigration director Mohd Rusdi Mohd Darus said that the injured immigrant was handed over to the Civil Defence Force (APM) for immediate medical treatment at a nearby hospital.
He added that during the 10.30am raid, dubbed Ops Mahir, the department inspected 215 foreign and local workers at the location here on Wednesday (May 7).
“Out of that total, we arrested 189 individuals who are believed to have no valid work permits or legal status in the country.
“Of those detained, 165 are Bangladeshi nationals, 18 are from Myanmar, and nine are Indonesian,” he said in a press conference held at the raid location.
Mohd Rusdi added that all detained migrants will be taken to the Johor Immigration Department headquarters at Taman Setia Tropika here for further processing before being placed in the Pekan Nanas Immigration Detention Depot.
“We want to remind employers to hire workers through legal channels. Should any complaints arise, inspections will be conducted, and if any wrongdoing is found, firm action will be taken.
“All arrests of these illegal immigrants were made under Regulation 39(b) of the Immigration Regulations 1963; Section 6(1)(c) and Section 15(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63,” he added.
Mohd Rusdi also said that the raid involved 120 officers and personnel from the Johor Immigration Enforcement Division, as well as officers and personnel from the Sultan Iskandar Building and the Sultan Abu Bakar Complex.
“Johor Immigration Department is committed to ensuring that every employer in the state, across all sectors, complies with the law by hiring foreign workers in accordance with our country’s legal requirements,” he said.
