JOHOR BARU: Four members of a syndicate are expected to be charged tomorrow with smuggling 21 migrants into the country last month.
The four — a woman and three men — will face charges under Section 26A of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 (Atipsom).
Under that section, they can be sentenced to jail of not more than 15 years, subject to a fine, or both.
State police chief Datuk M. Kumar said they had been arrested on Sept 9 during a 5.30am raid on a safehouse used as a transit point in the smuggling of migrants.
The 21 migrants aged between 19 and 44, he said, were also arrested in the raid on the premises in Taman Daya, here.
He said the four syndicate members played roles in managing and transporting the migrants and the safehouse.
The raid, said Kumar, was conducted after police received information and conducted surveillance of the premises regarding the smuggling of migrants via the Causeway.
He added that the activity was believed to have been going on since August and was masterminded by several individuals believed to be from Bangladesh and Malaysia.
Kumar said police seized 25 mobile phones; 22 Bangladeshi passports; cash comprising RM1,200, S$2 and 5,460 in Bangladeshi taka; an ATM card; a vehicle loan agreement; and, two cars.
"Initial investigations revealed that the migrants were 'managed' by an agent in Bangladesh, paying 550,000 taka (RM20,000) each. They would then fly to Changi International Airport in Singapore.
"From there, a syndicate agent would bring them into Malaysia by foot, walking down an isolated path towards the Sultan Ibrahim building," he said in a statement.
Once they had successfully been smuggled into Johor, a "transporter" would take the migrants to the safehouse.
Kumar said the four syndicate members were initially detained under Section 4(5) of the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 while the migrants were detained under Section 51(5)(B) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.
He said the migrants had, on Sept 23, been charged under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act, for which they can be fined RM10,000 or jailed for up to five years, or both. They can also receive up to six lashes of the rotan.
Kumar said the case against the migrants would be up for mention on Oct 13.