Beluran GOF nabs 21 for attempting inter-district travel via rat trails

BELURAN, Feb 13 -- Twenty-one people who were attempting to travel inter-district using rat trails near here were nabbed yesterday morning.

Beluran district police chief Supt Kasim Muda said the group was detained by a team from the 20th Battalion General Operations Force (GOF) who were patrolling the rat trails at about 5.30 am.

“Those arrested aged between three and 41 years who claimed that they were moving from an oil palm plantation in Telupid to another plantation in Kinabatangan. Both plantations belong to the same company.

“Sixteen out of them have no valid identity documents and believed to be Indonesian, while the remaining are four Malaysian citizens and an Indonesian with a valid document,” he said, in a statement, today.

Kasim said three four-wheel-drive vehicles were also seized during the arrest.

He said the case was being investigated under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 for having no valid travel documents and Section 55E of the same act against the plantation owner for allowing illegal immigrants to enter their premises.

-- BERNAMA