A total of 35 foreign nationals were detained during an Immigration Department operation at three locations in Kuching last night.
Immigration Department deputy director-general (Operations) Datuk Lokman Effendi Ramli said the raids were carried out near Jalan Chan Chin Ann, Jalan Stutong and Moyan Square.
The Borneo Post observed that the enforcement teams mainly targeted eateries and massage parlours in the areas.
He said the operation involved 45 enforcement officers from the Sarawak Immigration Enforcement Division, who screened 57 foreign nationals.
“Of the 57 foreign nationals screened, 35 individuals – comprising 15 men and 20 women, were detained for allegedly committing offences under the Immigration Act 1959/63 (Act 155),” he told reporters after the operation ended at around midnight today.
Among the alleged offences were overstaying and misusing visit passes.
Lokman said some of those detained were also found without travel documents or passports, while others allegedly used their visit passes to work in Malaysia.
“Visit passes are for the purpose of touring or visiting our country, and they are not permitted to work. As such, working here is an offence unless they possess a valid work permit.
“We will conduct further checks and verification on the status of their documents before any subsequent action is taken,” he said.
Those detained were subsequently taken to the Semuja Immigration Depot for temporary detention and processing.
Lokman also reminded employers not to protect or employ undocumented foreign workers, warning that they could face legal action if found guilty.
He added that intelligence gathering and enforcement operations would continue periodically to detect foreign nationals suspected of violating the Immigration Act.
