PETALING JAYA: The ban on illegal crossing along the Kelantan-Thailand border has shown an effective result, as the number of trespassers has dropped by 95.5 percent since its implementation last December.
Kelantan police chief Datuk Mohd Yusoff Mamat emphasised the drop of 55,126 cases by comparing the July to November period of last year—before the ban—with the December to April period of this year, reported New Straits Times.
He cited the statistics, where the number of individuals using the illegal routes declined gradually from 57,722 in July to November last year to 2,596 from last December to April this year.
In addition to halting the flow of unauthorised immigration, the border control measures have also assisted in reducing drug abuse and smuggling, he said.
He claimed that the number of drug-related arrests had sharply increased as border enforcement authorities intensified their operations, with state police making 18,254 arrests in 2023 compared to 29,785 in 2024.
As of this year’s first quarter, Mohd Yusoff noted that police had arrested 12,370 individuals connected to narcotics offenses and smuggling syndicates operating through illegal routes.
