PUTRAJAYA: The Immigration Department has busted a passport forgery syndicate believed to have been operating for about a year, with its services allegedly used to help foreign workers evade mandatory health screenings.
Immigration Department director-general Datuk Zakaria Shaaban said two Bangladeshi men, aged 29 and 32, were arrested during raids at two condominium units in Taman Wahyu, Kampung Batu, Kuala Lumpur, at about 11.30am on Wednesday (Aug 12).
The operation, conducted by the department's Intelligence and Special Operations Division, followed a week of surveillance.
It was launched following information obtained from three Indonesian men arrested on Aug 5 in connection with passport forgery and alteration activities.
“We believe the two Bangladeshi men are key figures in the syndicate, which is believed to have been operating for about a year,” he said at press conference here on Thursday (Aug 13).
He said the suspected mastermind, who had been in Malaysia for about nine years, held a Temporary Employment Visit Pass (PLKS) for the construction sector, while the other suspect had overstayed.
Authorities seized two genuine Bangladeshi passports, nine suspected fake Bangladeshi passports, three mobile phones, 700 passport sheets and 300 passport covers for various countries believed to be counterfeit.
Also seized were suspected fake Immigration stamps for entry through Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), exit stamps for Batam, Indonesia, and Dhaka, Bangladesh, as well as two laptops and a printer.
Zakaria said Immigration also found RM200,000 in an e-wallet account belonging to the suspected mastermind, believed to be proceeds from the illegal activity.
He said the syndicate was believed to target foreign workers who failed or were deemed ineligible during mandatory health screenings conducted by the Foreign Workers' Medical Examination Monitoring Agency (Fomema).
“The photograph in the passport would be changed, but the identity used would remain that of the original individual.
“A healthy individual could then undergo a medical examination using the identity of someone who was deemed ineligible,” he said.
The Immigration Department said the fake passports could also be affixed with fake entry and exit stamps to create seemingly valid travel records and deceive enforcement authorities.
Zakaria said the syndicate charged between RM200 and RM300 per transaction, with demand believed to be high based on the amount of materials found at the premises.
“They had enough materials to produce up to 2,000 fake passports. This shows that demand for such activities is quite high,” he said.
Zakaria said producing a fake passport could take only a few minutes if the syndicate had the necessary equipment and expertise.
He said the syndicate did not openly advertise its services, instead relying on freelance agents and personal contacts to obtain customers.
Immigration would also investigate whether a printing company had been used to produce some of the materials, he said.
The operation marked the sixth series of arrests involving a syndicate using a similar modus operandi.
Zakaria said investigations were ongoing to determine whether other individuals or networks were still operating, including outside the Klang Valley.
The suspects are being investigated under Sections 55D and 56(1)(d) of the Immigration Act 1959/63, while the other man is being investigated under Section 15(1)(c) of the same Act.
