KUALA LUMPUR, July 12 — The police and Immigration Department said today they have conducted a series of busts throughout the city and arrested 166 illegal foreigners, including 17 African nationals.
KL police chief Datuk Seri Mazlan Lazim said the operations took place from last Friday, July 5, until yesterday, involving 329 police personnel and six Immigration officers.
“The operations took place along Pasar Pudu, Jalan Chow Kit, Kawasan Kepong, Changkat Bukit Bintang, Jalan Silang, Kawasan Bt.5 1⁄2, Jalan Klang Lama, LRT Bandar Tasik Selatan, Taman Miharja, Jalan Haji Eusoff, LRT PWTC, Taman Fadason Jinjang, Taman Wilayah Jinjang, Batu Muda Jinjang, Taman Dato Senu Sentral, Jalan Sepadu, Jalan Raden Bagus dan Jalan Alor Bukit Bintang,” he said in a statement.
Inspections were carried out on 505 foreign nationals during the operations, of which 166 were detained. The majority of those detained are from Myanmar and Bangladesh, at 55 and 45 respectively.
Mazlan said of the 17 African nationals detained by the authorities, 12 are from Nigeria, with the remaining from Sierra Leone, Senegal, Uganda, Ghana and the DR Congo.
“Action will be taken per Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63, which concerns entering and residing in Malaysia without a lawful permit, and relevant acts.
“The detainees were brought to the Jinjang Lock-up for further action, in accordance with set standard operating procedures,” he said.
Mazlan said that foreigners, particularly Africans, coming into the city have contributed to criminal activities across the country.
“Such operations will be continued to counter the problems arising from foreign nationals, as well as to reduce the crime rate caused by them.
“If the public has any relevant information, they may contact the KL police hotline at 03-2146 9999, or any nearby police stations,” he said.
Yesterday afternoon, a group of Nigerian nationals protested outside their country’s high commission along Jalan Ampang Hilir, where they voiced their anger at the lack of consular assistance given to the 30,000 Nigerians currently in Malaysia.
It is also understood that the protest was triggered by the death of 34-year old management doctorate student Thomas Orhionsefe Ewansiha, who died while in the custody of the Immigration Department.
The father of two was detained during a raid last Thursday (July 4) in Desa Aman Puri, where he allegedly attempted to flee Immigration officers.
Although he was successfully detained and found to have a passport and valid student pass, his attempt at fleeing aroused suspicion and doubts of the passport’s authenticity.
Ewansiha was subsequently brought to the Bukit Jalil Immigration detention depot where in the early hours of Tuesday morning, he reportedly experienced a seizure in his sleep.
Despite attempts to revive him by the depot’s special treatment unit, the ambulance from Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia which arrived 25 minutes later eventually declared him dead after further treatment.
