Bids to smuggle in migrants foiled
Published on: Wednesday, May 28, 2025
Published on: Wed, May 28, 2025
By: Azmie Lim Text Size: Among those detained while trying to enter via Semporna. SEMPORNA: Marine Police foiled two attempts by two speed boats to smuggle in migrants via Pulau Boheian waters on Sunday. Sabah Region Four Marine Commander, ACP Mohd Nazri Ibrahim, said the speed boats were apprehended in Ops Taring Gelora conducted in the areas. 'Inspection found that the speedboats were carrying 25 passengers attempting to enter the state without permission. 'The boat skipper admitted they were paid and from the Philippines and wanted to enter Semporn,' he said. Mohd Nazri said all those detained and the seizures estimated worth RM65,237 were taken to the Semporna Marine base for further action. He said both cases are being investigated under Section 26A of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants (Atipsom) Act 2007 and Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.
Advertisement He said human smuggling is a serious matter, especially in the east coast and the police always keep an eye on this matter. Marine Police will continue to intensify patrol and operation as well as taking stern action against any parties attempting to enter the state or involved in smuggling of migrants. Members of public are urged to convey any information on crime activities by contacting the Marine at 088-454819 or via Pasukan Polis Marin Wilayah 4 Sabah on Facebook. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.
Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
14 hours ago
- The Star
Cambodia detains 10,487 drug suspects, seizing 1.78 tons of narcotics during January-May period
PHNOM PENH (Xinhua): Cambodia had apprehended 10,487 drug-related suspects in the first five months of 2025, up 12 percent from 9,369 over the same period last year, said an Anti-Drug Department (ADP)'s report released on Monday. Among them are 250 foreigners, including 20 women, the report said. A total of 1.78 tons of illicit drugs had been confiscated from those suspects' possession during the January-May period this year, down 62 percent from 4.71 tons over the same period last year, according to the report. Also, the authorities had impounded 25 pistols, 14 rifles, 83 cars, 1,015 motorcycles, 3,635 telephones and 353 scales, as well as some cash during the raids this year, the report added. Most of the confiscated narcotics included ketamine, ecstasy, heroin, crystal methamphetamine, methamphetamine pills, cocaine, and cathinone, among others. The Southeast Asian nation has no death sentence for illicit drug traffickers. Under its law, those found guilty of trafficking more than 80 grams of illicit drugs could be imprisoned for life. - Phnom Penh Post/ANN
The Sun
19 hours ago
- The Sun
Bulgaria cyber ‘elves' fight Kremlin and cruelty
SOFIA, BULGARIA: A Bulgarian group of dozens of cyber activists at first clubbed together to battle Russian disinformation, but they have since found other foes -- like animal abusers. They call themselves the BG Elves, which both refers to the kind-hearted characters of Scandinavian mythology and hints at a rivalry with the internet's malicious trolls. The collective of about 70 anonymous cyber security experts have made a name for themselves by creating problems for their adversaries. One of their latest efforts was helping an animal rights NGO uncover evidence that led to the March arrest of a woman and a man accused of selling videos online of hundreds of animals being tortured to death. 'Our work was crucial, because for the first time a crime was solved in Bulgaria based on OSINT data, proving that our efforts can produce concrete results,' software developer Petko Petkov, the Elves' only public face, told AFP. OSINT refers to open-source intelligence, which is information gathered with digital investigation techniques like reverse image search and geolocation. In the summer of 2024, the NGO alerted the cyber sleuths to videos posted on Telegram of a masked woman torturing animals. The Elves tracked her down within hours. Using OSINT, they were also able to trace the locations where the videos of cats, rabbits and guinea pigs being tortured on camera were filmed by her accomplice. The videos sparked widespread protests in Bulgaria, and prompted the government to propose emergency legislation. - 'Counter-propaganda' - Set up in 2023 in response to pro-Kremlin disinformation flooding Bulgaria, the group first zeroed in on the key players involved in the campaigns. 'There were about 10 of us in a chat group, we refined the concept, then put out a call for volunteers,' Petkov told AFP about the group's founding. They have grown significantly since and include experts in cyber security, social engineering and databases. 'We are not hackers, we are researchers,' said Petkov, 37, who moved from central Bulgaria to Kyiv shortly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Dedicated to activism, the Elves try to fight the deluge of disinformation by disseminating 'counter-propaganda that makes people think', he said. 'We noticed that a (disinfo) narrative... takes some time to reach people. Our idea was to flood the space with humour and irony before the propaganda takes hold,' said Petkov. Recently, they launched a viral meme campaign targeting the main false claims about Bulgaria's accession to the eurozone, distributing the content through profiles embedded within major disinformation networks. In March, BG Elves supported a Romanian journalist in an investigation that exposed a Russia-linked disinformation and propaganda network funded through online advertising. - 'More serious' cases - In the wake of the recent arrests, Bulgaria proposed a bill in parliament, which allows for higher prison terms of up to 10 years for torturing animals. Nearly 300 people have been convicted of such offences in the last five years, but few end up in prison. Petya Altimirska, president of the animal welfare association CAAI, who had reached out to the Elves for help in the abuse case, has since received numerous reports of 'even more serious' cases, adding that the cyber sleuths are already 'on it'. While the group was praised for exposing the animal abuse, it has also faced criticism and numerous threats for its provocative approach and alleged political bias.
The Star
21 hours ago
- The Star
Russian attacks kill five in Zaporizhzhia, injure several in Kharkiv, regional officials say
Local resident Lyudmila Tsinkush leaves her house that was damaged in a Russian drones strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, June 1, 2025. REUTERS/Thomas Peter (Reuters) -Russian shelling and air attacks killed five people outside the southeastern Ukraine city of Zaporizhzhia, while a drone attack on the northeast region of Sumy injured at least six early on Monday, including two children, regional officials said. Ivan Fedorov, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said three women died in a series of Russian shelling incidents targeting the village of Ternuvate, east of Zaporizhzhia late on Sunday. A shop and several homes were badly damaged. A man died in a nearby district in a Russian strike by a guided aerial bomb, Fedorov said. A total of nine people were injured in the Russian attacks and a private home was destroyed. Two children were among those injured in a Russian drone attack on the Sumy region, Oleh Sinehubov, the governor of the region, said on Monday on Telegram. "A 7-year-old boy is among the victims," Sinehubov said. He added that several buildings throughout the regions were damaged. The attacks come as both Russia and Ukraine are about to meet for a round of peace talks, trying to find a way to end the war that Russia launched with a full-scale invasion on its smaller neighbour more than three years ago. (Reporting by Ron Popeski, Bogdan Kochubey and Lidia Kelly; Editing by Lincoln by Ron Popeski and Lidia Kelly;Editing by Rod Nickel)
