GOF busts Migrant Smuggling Syndicate In Tumpat, 12 Arrested Including 'Tonto'

KOTA BHARU, April 19 (Bernama) -- Police arrested 12 individuals, including two local women and nine foreign nationals, during Op Taring Wawasan Kelantan to combat migrant smuggling activities in Tumpat yesterday.

General Operations Force (GOF) Southeast Brigade Commander SAC Ahmad Radzi Hussain said the operation, conducted at about 5 am, was based on intelligence and led to the arrest of the suspects at a premise in Bandar Baru Pasir Pekan, Wakaf Bharu.

He said a team from the 9th Battalion, together with the Tumpat district police headquarters Criminal Investigation Division, earlier detected a suspicious vehicle behind the premise before carrying out an inspection.

“Checks found that seven Bangladeshi men possessed passports but did not have valid passes, while two Myanmar men failed to produce any travel documents. They are believed to have entered the country through illegal routes from Thailand,” he said in a statement today.

Ahmad Radzi said a 24-year-old local man, suspected of acting as a transporter, was also arrested, along with two local women aged 18 and 17, one of whom is believed to have acted as a ‘tonto’.

He said initial investigations revealed that the local man, who tested positive for drugs, was paid RM100 for each migrant transported, while the women received about RM150 for monitoring the movements of authorities. Also seized were a Proton Iswara Aeroback and a Yamaha Y15ZR motorcycle, with an estimated value of RM17,000.

The case is being investigated under Section 26A of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 (ATIPSOM), Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63, and Section 15(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952. The suspects and seized items have been handed over to the Tumpat IPD for further action.

-- BERNAMA