KANGAR: Despite intensified efforts by enforcement authorities to clamp down on “rat lanes” (lorong tikus) along the Malaysia-Thailand border, smugglers are finding new routes to continue their illegal activities.
Thus, the cat-and-mouse game ensues between border patrol personnel and smugglers, posing a major challenge for the authorities.
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A source who used to work with a smuggling syndicate revealed that there are more than 30 illegal lanes along the border used for smuggling anything, from drugs and contraband items to people.
“Smugglers use the routes at night when their activities are less likely to be detected.“These unchecked, often unmapped routes, are used to bypass border checkpoints.
“In fact, it is said that the infamous cosmetics entrepreneur, Nur Sajat, had allegedly sought the services of a smuggling syndicate to escape through one of the routes near Padang Besar,” the source said.
Perlis police chief Datuk Comm Muhammad Abdul Halim (pic) said “rat lanes” still pose a significant threat despite increased enforcement.
However, he noted that the routes are constantly monitored by the authorities.
“Notably, activities at the rat lanes have reduced compared with the period before the MCO (Movement Control Order).
“During the MCO, the border was tightly monitored, leading to a significant slowdown in smuggling activities.
“Although there has been some resurgence post-MCO, they appear to be on a smaller scale,” he told The Star.Comm Muhammad explained that border monitoring strategies adopted in Perlis involve a two-layered system – one at the border managed by the General Operations Force (GOF), while the inland areas are overseen by the district police headquarters in Kangar and Padang Besar.
He said the surveillance efforts extend to both land and sea borders.
“To bolster maritime security, the Royal Malaysian Police works closely with the Northern Region Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency and the marine police, ensuring that both agencies are actively involved in patrolling Malaysian waters,” Comm Muhammad said.
Commenting on the persistent issue of the smuggling of subsidised fuel and subsidised cooking oil, he said the district police had established a special task force known as Op Tiris.
The dedicated unit, formed over six months ago, focuses on tracking and intercepting vehicles involved in the illegal transportation of fuel across the border.
He said the task force’s presence has been instrumental in curbing smuggling activities in the region.
Comm Muhammad also said nine people, including a woman, had been detained for smuggling subsidised cooking oil, with the authorities seizing about 1,600kg of cooking oil from January to June this year.
During the same period, seven people were caught smuggling 2,400 litres of subsidised diesel and 3,449 litres of subsidised petrol to a neighbouring country.
A total of 113 illegal immigrants, including 19 women from Myanmar, Bangladesh, India, Thailand, Cambodia and Indonesia, were detained under Section 6(1) of the Immigration Act 1959/1963.
“We also arrested 47 people under Section 26A of the Atipsom Act 2007 (Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act) for smuggling in migrants,” he said.Comm Muhammad said police also confiscated 528kg of syabu, 194kg of ganja and 2,072kg of ketum leaves with 12 arrests in total at the border.
Malaysia’s northern border has witnessed several notorious incidents, with the worst and most shocking being the 2015 Rohingya findings, when 139 graves and 28 human trafficking camps were discovered in the Wang Burma and Wang Perah hills in Wang Kelian.
The graves were believed to belong to Rohingya smuggled from Myanmar and Bangladesh.
In November 2020, a GOF member was shot dead while his patrol partner was seriously injured after they were involved in a shootout with smugglers in Padang Besar.
Kpl Baharuddin Ramli, 54, died at the scene, while Kpl Norihan Tari, 39, was severely injured.
Kpl Baharuddin was a member of the feared and respected Senoi Praaq, who are known for their tracking abilities in the jungle.
Established in 1956, the Senoi Praaq are a crack troop specialising in deep jungle reconnaissance work.
