Malaysian immigration police rescue 59 Bangladeshis in Kuala Lumpur

Malaysian immigration police have rescued 59 Bangladeshis, who were the victims of a human trafficking syndicate, in a raid on two condominiums in Kuala Lumpur, police say.

A team of immigration police raided the premises of two condos in Desa Petaling where the victims were kept in crowded conditions at about 4.30pm on Monday.

“A Bangladeshi man, detained in the raid, is suspected to be the ‘keeper’ of the trafficked men and believed to have a role in managing the arrival of foreign workers and supplying them to employers,” state news agency Bernama quoted Immigration Director-General Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali as telling the media.

Two men and a woman of Bangladeshi origin have also been arrested in the raid. They were believed to have assisted and controlled the transit home from where the victims were sent to agents or employers, the report added.

"The victims stayed in the transit home in crowded conditions. Their mobile phones, passports and money were confiscated by the syndicate and they were not allowed out of the house or make phone calls," Mustafar said in a statement.

He said the victims were also threatened if they did not follow instructions or tried to leave the transit home.

According to the DG, Bernama said, a computer and a printer have also been also confiscated during the raid, and it is believed that those were used in the printing of fake immigration security stickers.

“The victims were promised jobs in Malaysia and were charged between RM18,000 and RM20,000 each to enter Malaysia through Indonesia.”

“They were flown from Bangladesh to Jakarta and taken to a location near the beach before boarding a boat and smuggled into Malaysia.

"While in Indonesia, the victims were placed in a transit house and guarded by the syndicate.