JOHOR BARU: Three local men and 36 women, allegedly working as guest relations officers (GROs), were detained during raids on two pubs in Taman Mount Austin on Saturday (Nov 9).
The 1.30am operation, codenamed Op Gegar, led to the detention of 46 foreigners, including the 36 Thai nationals, who are suspected of being involved in immoral activities.
The group of detainees also included two Thai men, three Myanmar nationals, a Vietnamese man, and a Laotian man, all aged between 21 and 47.
In addition, the three local men, aged 19 to 52, were identified as the alleged employers and caretakers of the pubs and were also taken into custody.
Johor Immigration Department director Datuk Mohd Rusdi Mohd Darus said that the women had been using aliases to avoid detection and were suspected of providing sexual services.
He said based on preliminary investigations, customers were charged RM50 for entertainment within the pubs, while their rates for accompanying guests to their homes ranged from RM800 per night and upwards.
He added that the raids followed intelligence-gathering and investigations that revealed the establishments were allegedly employing foreign workers without valid permits and facilitating GRO services.
Evidence collected at the scene supported these allegations.
"These establishments employed GROs to accompany customers, with various additional packages available. The foreign nationals involved had entered Malaysia on social visit passes, which they reportedly misused for immoral activities," Mohd Rusdi said in a statement today.