Malaysia Immigration detains 1,155 foreigners in nationwide Op Sasar raids, with 2,254 people inspected at 40 locations for immigration offences
SHAH ALAM: The Immigration Department detained 1,155 foreigners after inspecting 2,254 people at 40 locations nationwide in operations conducted under Op Sasar today.
Immigration Department Enforcement Division director Datuk Basri Othman said those detained comprised 907 men and 248 women, aged between 20 and 58, for various immigration offences.
The nationwide operation involved 629 personnel, with 34 witness summonses also issued.
The operation included raids on two factories manufacturing air-conditioning components in Shah Alam and Teluk Panglima Garang, where an employer who allegedly held only a social visit pass was also detained.
“We carried out Op Sasar throughout the country today, involving inspections at 40 premises or locations. Details of the offences will be announced later,” he told a press conference following the Shah Alam operation.
Basri said an Immigration headquarters team from Putrajaya inspected 227 people and detained 117 during a raid at about 2.48pm at a factory in Section 7 here.
Those detained were taken to the Semenyih Immigration Depot for investigation and further action.
Earlier, officers inspected 37 people at a factory in Teluk Panglima Garang and detained 35.
Among those detained were nine Chinese men and two Chinese women who were allegedly working without valid work passes.
“They were found not to have valid passes to work. We also detained the employer at the factory, who did not have a work pass and was understood to hold only a social visit pass,” he said.
Basri said officers had surrounded the Teluk Panglima Garang premises before beginning the raid.
“During the operation in Teluk Panglima Garang, we found several people trying to run away to avoid being detained.
“The entire area had been cordoned off from the start, and they failed to escape,” he said.
He said most of those detained worked as factory operators.
Basri said the department was intensifying Op Sasar this year to address the presence of undocumented migrants nationwide.
“We want to inform the public that we are consistently carrying out operations to address the issue of undocumented migrants,” he said.
He also said foreigners who had committed immigration offences could return voluntarily through the Migrant Repatriation Programme, which he said remained open until next year.
In a separate Op Sasar operation earlier today, the department detained 325 foreigners after inspecting 740 people at an apartment complex in Putrajaya.
The early-morning raid followed public complaints and information concerning a high concentration of foreigners at the location.
Intelligence gathering and surveillance were conducted based on the information received before officers moved in.
The raid involved 127 officers from Immigration headquarters, with assistance from the Peninsular Malaysia Labour Department and National Registration Department.
Those detained comprised 270 men and 55 women aged between 18 and 56, from Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, Nepal and Thailand.
The offences detected included not having valid travel documents or passes, overstaying and breaching pass conditions, as well as other offences under the Immigration Act 1959/63 and related regulations.
All 325 were taken to the Lenggeng Immigration Depot for investigation and further action.
