Immigration busts a fake document syndicate worth over RM100m, arresting nine suspects and seizing passports in a multi-location Ops Serkap raid.
PUTRAJAYA: The Immigration Department has dismantled a sophisticated document falsification syndicate believed to have generated over RM100 million in illicit profits over a seven-year period.
A special operation across six locations led to the arrest of nine individuals and the seizure of 111 passports.
Immigration Director-General Datuk Zakaria Shaaban stated that the operation, conducted on 13 and 14 April under Ops Serkap, was the culmination of six months of intelligence gathering. In addition to the passports, officers seized 10 laptops, six mobile phones and RM3,950 in cash.
The department believes the syndicate charged between RM5,000 and RM6,000 per worker to “regularise” their status through forged documents.
The detainees, aged between 26 and 61, include: three Nepalese men, three Indian men, one Bangladeshi man, one local man and one Vietnamese woman (a permanent resident), both of whom are believed to have acted as company owners and directors.
The alleged mastermind, identified as 43-year-old Nepalese national Mahendra Jung Shah (known as “MJ”), was intercepted in a vehicle on Jalan Galloway, Kuala Lumpur.
Despite his involvement in the syndicate, he was found to be a valid expatriate pass holder.
Zakaria explained that the syndicate specialised in producing falsified long-term immigration passes, allowing foreign workers to appear lawfully employed.
“The raids uncovered several altered immigration documents, including e-passes, e-pass stickers and security stickers affixed inside passports. In other words, they were falsified,” Zakaria told reporters at the Putrajaya Immigration headquarters today.
He added that the syndicate bypassed the mandatory Home Ministry quota applications required for a Temporary Employment Visit Pass.
By processing these documents illegally, the syndicate left the workers in a vulnerable state, as their presence in the country remained unlawful despite possessing the forged passes.
Checks indicate the syndicate had been operating from 2019 to 2026.
However, secondary records suggest their activities may stretch back more than seven years.
“We estimate that the syndicate may have generated more than RM100 million in profits or collections. That remains a primary focus of our ongoing investigation,” Zakaria added.
The department is currently collaborating with the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM) and the Inland Revenue Board (LHDN) to trace the company’s corporate structure and further financial links.
The case is being investigated under the Immigration Act 1959/63, Passport Act 1966, and the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLA).
