PADANG BESAR: Police detained five Cambodian men without valid travel documents and expired travel permits as they attempted to leave Malaysia via the border checkpoint here on Jan 6.
Padang Besar District police chief ACP Mohd Shokri Abdullah said the suspects, aged between 18 and 44, were detained at Gapura Square at 8.30 am following intelligence from the Padang Besar and Perlis police contingent headquarters’ Criminal Investigation Departments.
“A black Toyota Unser was intercepted. The driver was a 43-year-old Cambodian woman with permanent resident status (acting as the transporter), accompanied by five male foreign nationals.
“Four of them had expired passports, while another did not possess valid travel documents. Cash amounting to RM4,270, 3,200 Baht, and 920 Cambodian Riel was also seized,” he said during a press conference at the Padang Besar district police headquarters (IPD) today.
Interrogation of the female driver led to the arrest of another Cambodian woman, aged 34, believed to be the coordinator of the attempt, at the same location.
Initial investigations revealed that the female driver was allegedly paid RM400 by a foreign woman to transport the five men from Kedah to Padang Besar, where they were to be sent home via the Padang Besar border checkpoint.
“The foreign woman is believed to have arranged for the five men to enter the neighbouring country with help from a local man there, charging RM900 per person,“ he said.
Mohd Shokri said the two women were remanded for 28 days under Section 4(5) of the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012, while the five men were remanded for 14 days under the Immigration Act 1959/63.
Meanwhile, he noted that the Padang Besar IPD recorded 21 cases under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 last year, with 20 cases brought to court and one case marked as no further action.
