By Aida Aziz
IPOH: A secret door in the bathroom of an entertainment center here has become a hideout for illegal immigrants trying to evade authorities.
According to the Director of the Perak State Immigration Department, Meor Hezbullah Meor Abd Malik, an operation carried out at two entertainment centers around Kinta in the early hours of Sunday successfully apprehended 53 illegal immigrants.
The detainees are aged between 18 and 45 years old.
He said the raid, conducted under Ops Gegar, was based on complaints and intelligence gathered by the Perak State Immigration Department’s Intelligence and Operations Unit at all the premises.
“The operation began at 1:30 AM and concluded at 6 AM on August 4.
“A total of 26 officers, including police personnel, checked 175 foreign and local nationals.
“53 foreigners were detained on reasonable grounds for violating the Immigration Act 1959/63 and the Immigration Regulations 1963.
“The detainees include 25 Chinese women, 16 Vietnamese women, one Thai woman, one Indonesian woman, and 10 Bangladeshi men,” he said through statement here today.
He added that the Perak Immigration Department had to pry open the secret door in the bathroom to remove 11 illegal immigrants hiding there.
Meor Hezbullah stated that all detainees have been held at the Ipoh Immigration Depot for further investigation and action.
They are suspected of violating Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63, which concerns entering and staying in Malaysia without a valid pass.
Additionally, violations under Section 15(1)(c) of the same act, which involves staying in Malaysia after the expiration of a valid pass, and infractions under Regulation 39(b) of the Immigration Regulations 1963, which pertains to breaching pass conditions, are also noted.
He further urged the public to report or complain to help combat the presence of illegal immigrants in the country.
