GOF Arrests 35 Individuals Over Human Trafficking In Sabak Bernam

KUALA LUMPUR, June 15 (Bernama) -- The General Operations Force (GOF) Central Brigade arrested 35 individuals, including seven locals in an anti-human trafficking raid in Sabak Bernam, near here on Wednesday.

Its commander, SAC Hakemal Hawari said the raid at about 5 am was conducted along Jalan Masjid near the JK1 electric pole, Kampung Parit Baru, Kampung Sungai Air Tawar, Sabak Bernam.

“(We) managed to arrest... seven local men who acted as guides and transporters, and 28 Indonesians, 24 men and four women, who are all illegal immigrants,” he said at a media conference here today, adding that those arrested were aged between 20 and 50 years.

The GOF also seized six cars, a motorcycle and seven mobile phones used in smuggling migrants valued at RM360,000, he said, and the case is being investigated under Section 26A of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 and Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.

On the achievements of Task Force Delta this year, Hakemal said that from the start of the year till today, the team conducted 11 raids linked to 22 cases and arrested 247 individuals, and seized assets and equipment used for smuggling migrants worth about RM1.5 million.

From the total, 32 were guides and transporters, and the remaining 160 men, 54 women and a boy, were foreigners.

Hakemal said in the same period, 187 raids were conducted in areas under his brigade’s jurisdiction, covering Selangor, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka and Johor.

A total of 662 individuals were arrested and RM257 million in seizures were recorded, he said, adding that based on statistics of arrests, the majority of arrested illegal immigrants were Indonesian.

-- BERNAMA