Cops arrest mastermind of illegal worker ring

PETALING JAYA: Operating under the guise of a business and food premises to evade detection by the authorities, a Bangladeshi man believed to be the mastermind behind an illegal foreign worker supply syndicate was arrested following a special ope­ration in Semenyih.

Immigration director-general Datuk Zakaria Shaaban said the man, believed to be the company owner and employer, was arres­ted during raids at two premises on Wednesday following a month-long intelligence operation by the department’s Intelligence and Special Operations Division from its Putrajaya headquarters.

“Also arrested were four Bangladeshi men, a Bangladeshi woman and a Thai woman, aged between 27 and 57, bringing the total number of arrests to seven,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Zakaria said initial checks discovered that the main suspect held Malaysian permanent resident (MyPR) status, while one of the Bangladeshi men possessed a student pass and the Thai woman held a temporary employment visit pass as a restaurant worker.

“The remaining foreign natio­nals did not possess valid passes or travel documents to remain in the country,” he said.

Zakaria added that officers also seized 31 Bangladeshi passports, one Thai passport, documents from the Companies Commission of Malaysia, and RM48,524 in cash.

He said the syndicate was believed to have managed and supplied foreign workers without the necessary approvals, targe­ting local employers, particularly in the Klang Valley, who required foreign labour.

“The syndicate charged RM4,000 per person to process and renew their passes,” he said.

Zakaria said the main suspect is being investigated under Section 12(1)(f) of the Passports Act 1966 and Section 55B of the Immi­gration Act 1959/63.

A Bangladeshi man and the Thai woman are being investiga­ted under Regulation 39(b) of the Immigration Regulations 1963, while the remaining foreign nationals are being investigated under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.

All suspects were taken to the Putrajaya Immigration office for further action, while a Malaysian man along with three women and a Bangladeshi man were served notices to assist in the investigation.