Caught in the act: Immigration officers arresting the Indonesian woman working as a smuggling syndicate transporter in Ampang.
KUALA LUMPUR: A human trafficking syndicate was busted with the arrest of eight Indonesians in Ampang.
Immigration director-general Datuk Zakaria Shaaban said a foreign woman was also rescued from being exploited following an anti-human trafficking operation at 4.52pm on Wednesday.
“We detained an Indonesian woman who was the syndicate’s transporter and two Indonesian men after stopping a car in Ampang. The two men had just arrived in Malaysia via illegal means.
“Four other men and a woman from Indonesia were also detained at a parking lot nearby.
“They were in the midst of leaving the country illegally,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Investigations also led the raiding team to a house, which was used as a transit home.
“There, we rescued a frail foreign woman. We believe she was sent to the illegal agents by her employer to be sent back to her home country.
“We also seized several passports at the premises,” he added.
Zakaria said the syndicate offered services to bring foreigners to Malaysia and send them back to their home country illegally.
“Each foreigner is charged RM4,500. The illegal agents are Indonesians and their customers are from Johor and Negri Sembilan,” he added.
Zakaria said the operation employed methods to identify potential human trafficking victims among vulnerable groups in accordance with the National Guideline on Human Trafficking Indicators 2.0.
“We are also looking at offences under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 (Act 670),” said Zakaria.
