KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 217 undocumented foreigners were detained following a large-scale operation in the city.
Immigration deputy director-general (operations) Datuk Lokman Effendi Ramli said the operation led to the arrest of 55 men and 162 women, aged between 21 and 63.
Those detained were from Indonesia, Bangladesh, the Philippines, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Nigeria and several other countries, with the highest number of arrests involving Myanmar and Indonesian nationals.
“At the first location along Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock, 876 individuals were inspected, comprising 652 foreigners and 224 Malaysians, while at the second location along Jalan Dagang in Ampang, 654 people were inspected, namely 394 foreigners and 260 Malaysians.
“This brings the total number of people inspected to 1,530, with those detained being placed at Immigration depots,” he told reporters yesterday.
Lokman Effendi also said several foreign nationals attempted to flee upon seeing enforcement officers at the scene.
Meanwhile, the use of fake MyKad as well as the issuance of irregular entry and exit stamps were also detected during the operation.
Lokman Effendi said the suspected fake MyKad had been handed over to the National Registration Department for further action, while investigations will be carried out on the irregular entry and exit stamps to identify and apprehend those involved.
Other offences identified during the operation included failure to show valid identification documents, breach of pass conditions, illegal entry, overstaying and possession of unrecognised cards, as well as other offences under the Immigration Act.
The operation, which began at 11am and ended at about 3pm, involved 150 Immigration officers from various levels, including officers from the Immigration Department headquarters in Putrajaya, as well as 13 officers from the National Registration Department.
In a related matter, the department arrested 92,360 undocumented migrants last year, Lokman Effendi said.
“A total of 13,910 operations were conducted nationwide during the year, and with a total of 239,326 individuals being inspected by the department in that time frame.”
He added that 2,163 employers were also arrested for various offences.
According to department statistics as of Jan 17, more than 500 operations had been conducted, with inspections involving over 6,000 individuals.
“The total number of undocumented migrants arrested, excluding today’s operation, stands at 1,760, while 35 employers have been arrested so far this year,” he said.
