PONTIAN, April 6 — A boat skipper, two assistants and six Indonesian undocumented migrants were arrested by police for trying to enter the country at Pantai Sungai Kuali in Permas here early yesterday.
Region Two (southern region) Marine Police Force commander Assistant Commissioner Muhd Zailani Abdullah said the suspects were earlier detained in a joint operation with the Pontian district police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and Permas station.
He said the joint team raided the shores of Pantai Sungai Kuali in Permas at 5am here after receiving information from the public that there were attempts by undocumented migrants to illegally enter the country from the location.
“During the raid, we detained a local skipper, two of his assistants and six Indonesians consisting of five men and a woman. The suspects were aged between 27 and 60.
“The raiding team also seized a boat and two units of 40 horsepower engines,” Muhd Zailani said in a statement.
Muhd Zailani said all the arrests and seized items were brought to the Pontian district police headquarters for further investigation.
“The boat skipper and his two assistants will be detained under Section 4 (5) of Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012, while the undocumented illegal migrants will be detained under Section 51 (5) (b) of the Immigration Act for further investigation,” he said.
Johor has vast, porous borders that exit through the sea and is a popular state used as illegal entry and exit points for foreigners.
Since April last year, the authorities have been actively monitoring the state’s sea borders from possible breaches by undocumented migrants and as part of the Covid-19 pandemic.
