By Aida Aziz
Photo: PPM
IPOH: The Marine Police Force (PPM) successfully detained a boat suspected of carrying 40 illegal immigrants (PATI) of Indonesian citizenship, near 1.1 nautical miles off the coast of the Tanjung Beting Beras Basah, Bagan Datuk, yesterday.
Perak Police Chief, Datuk Seri Mohd Yusri Hassan Basri said, the police received information from the public about the presence of a boat in a suspicious condition with a cargo believed to be foreign nationals.
He also said that, acting on the information received, the Kampung Acheh PPM had moved to the location of the boat suspected of carrying the PATI.
“Aware of the presence of the police, the Indonesian boat driver aged 47 and two Indonesian assistants aged 23 and 24 jumped into the sea to escape but were caught by the police.
“Further inspection in the boat has found 22 adult men, 11 women, four children, one male and three females believed to be Indonesian citizens aged between 1 and 55 years.
“The boat is believed to be on its way to Tanjung Balai, Indonesia but ran aground due to engine damage,” he told reporters on Monday.
Accordingly, he said, all arrests and confiscations were brought back to the Kampung Acheh PPM Operations Headquarters for further action.
He also said that the case was investigated in accordance with 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.
Mohd Yusri added that this success was the result of continuous cooperation between the community and enforcement agencies, especially the police.
Therefore, he said the Perak police called on the public to continue to channel any information related to crime so that eradication measures can be improved to ensure that the state is safe and secure.
