KUCHING, March 5 — Sibu police have arrested two men suspected to have been involved in scamming eight Sarawakians to work in Liberia, state Commercial Crimes Investigation Department head Superintendent Mustafa Kamal Gani Abdullah said today.
He said the two men, aged 56 and 60, were arrested this morning, following a report lodged by one of the victims earlier.
The two will be produced in a Sibu Magistrate’s court for a remand order to facilitate police investigation into the con job.
The eight Sarawakians returned home last night from Liberia, with the help of the Malaysian Foreign Ministry.
“Initial investigation revealed that sometime early in December last year, the complainant, in his police report, received a message via WeChat from a man offering a logging job in Liberia,” he said in a statement.
He said the complainant was offered a salary of a monthly salary RM8,000, plus meals, accommodation and air tickets by a logging company in Liberia.
Mustafa Kamal said the complainant and his seven friends agreed to take up the offer and then met a man to arrange for visa and air tickets to Liberia.
On January 3 this year, the eight, accompanied by a man, flew to Liberia and upon arrival, they were taken to a settlement at Mount Barclay.
He said after a month, the eight realised that there was no logging jobs for them.
“They were then forced to sell their personal belongings like handphones and watches to buy their daily needs,” he said.
The eight are Gawan Masin, 41, Enyang Ato, 66, Aji Surau, 39, Untol Luyang, 58, Sallim Tahir, 49, Suhaili Gani, 39, Bon Egat, 45, and Dingai Nyalak, 47.
In a statement yesterday, the Malaysian Foreign Ministry said the eight were victims of a local Malaysian job syndicate.
Last month, 47 Malaysians, including 40 from Sarawak, were repatriated from Cambodia where they were arrested and detained in December for allegedly being involved in online gambling.
