Immigration smashes two syndicates involved in forging papers
KUALA LUMPUR: Two groups, known as Ejen 001 and Al Ameen, involved in the abuse and forgery of Immigration documents, have been busted in raids by the Immigration Department here.
Immigration director-general Datuk Zakaria Shaaban said that based on a two-week surveillance, his team raided three locations in Jalan Ampang and Jalan Kia Peng here at 12.10pm last Tuesday.
They arrested five Chinese nationals and one Myanmar national, aged between 28 and 41, and subsequently dismantled the Ejen 001 group.
He said the team seized 23 Chinese passports, one Vanuatu passport, two sets of computer central processing units, premises stamp, four handphones, two Employment Pass cards, two sets of Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation application copies, one Chinese travel document and RM50,000 in cash.
'Preliminary investigations found that the Chinese national is believed to be the mastermind in offering immigration document-related services to other Chinese nationals in the country, such as applications for Social Visit Passes and Special Passes,' he said in a statement here yesterday, Bernama reported.
He said Ejen 001 was operating behind office premises that had been turned into an operations centre to deceive authorities, while the charges imposed were from RM10,000 to RM15,000 for each service offered.
The operations were believed to have been going on for the past six months.
In the second raid at 5.42pm on three business premises on Jalan Raja Laut here, Zakaria said the team arrested three Bangladeshi men, aged between 24 and 32.
They were identified as being involved in the forgery of Immigration documents for the Temporary Employment Visit Pass (ePLKS).
He said it was believed a group known as Al Ameen was involved in the forgery of ePLKS, targeting Bangladeshi nationals who do not have work permits here.
'The results of the QR Code check on ePLKS found that the owner is a different individual and there is no information, while the syndicate operates this illegal activity from mobile phone shops to deceive the authorities. They had been operating for six months,' he said, adding that the fee charged was RM30 to RM70 for one unit of fake ePLKS .
The team seized 18 Bangladeshi passports, one Pakistani passport, three laptops, two printers, closed-circuit television camera, a Kuala Lumpur City Hall licence and cash amounting to RM3,446.
Zakaria said all the detained individuals were taken to the Putrajaya Immigration Depot for further investigation.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
37 minutes ago
- The Star
Contractor fined RM50,000 for falsifying documents on MMEA vessel repairs
SHAH ALAM: A contractor was fined RM50,000 by the Sessions Court here after he pleaded guilty to forging documents related to repair works on a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) patrol vessel five years ago. Judge Datuk Mohd Nasir Nordin handed down the sentence on Zulham Shah Mohammad, 44, on Thursday (June 12) and ordered him to serve six months in jail if he failed to pay the fine. The accused was charged with submitting false documents certifying that Subturbo Sdn Bhd had completed the repairs and tested the Remote Control System and Monitoring Control System on KM Sugut when, in fact, the work had not been carried out. He was accused of committing the offence at the MMEA Engineering Division, Home Ministry, Levels 4 to 11, One IOI Square, IOI Resort, Putrajaya, on Nov 6, 2020. The charge was framed under Section 471 of the Penal Code for fraudulently using as genuine a forged document, punishable under Section 465 of the same Code, which provides for a maximum sentence of two years' imprisonment, a fine, or both, upon conviction. Earlier, during mitigation, the accused's counsel, Aiman Abdul Rahman, requested that the court impose the agreed fine of RM50,000. "I believe the early guilty plea has saved the time of many parties, was made with a sense of remorse, and the accused will not repeat the offence,' he said. However, Deputy Public Prosecutor from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), Ahmad Fariz Abdul Hamid, requested that the court impose an appropriate sentence as a deterrent to the accused and the public. In the same court, senior MMEA officer Muhamad Izuar Zainudin, aged 42, claimed trial to a charge of abetting Zulham Shah in forging the documents at the same location and date. He was charged under Section 471 of the Penal Code, punishable under Section 465 of the same Code, which provides for a maximum sentence of two years' imprisonment, a fine, or both, if convicted. Ahmad Fariz requested the court to set bail at RM30,000. However, counsel Shahidah Muslimah Roslan, representing Muhamad Izuar, appealed for a lower amount, citing her client's cooperation throughout the investigation. The court then allowed the accused bail of RM10,000 with one surety and fixed July 16 for mention. – Bernama
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
'I came to S. Korea to see him,' says China fan who attempted to break into home of BTS' Jungkook
Jungkook at the outdoor sporting facility in Yeoncheon on June 11, shortly after his discharge from the South Korean military service. - AFP SEOUL: A Chinese woman in her 30s has been arrested for attempting to break into the home of BTS member Jungkook, just hours after he was discharged from his mandatory military service. According to the Yongsan Police Station on Thursday (June 12), the woman was apprehended around 11:20pm on Wednesday after being caught repeatedly trying to enter the passcode at the front door of Jungkook's residence in Yongsan, central Seoul. Police responded to a report and arrested her at the scene on suspicion of attempted trespassing. The woman reportedly told officers she had come to South Korea to see the K-pop star following his return from military service. Jungkook completed his 18-month conscription and was officially discharged from the Army earlier that day. - The Korea Herald/ANN
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Report: Online shoppers hit by increasing number of parcel scams, more than 3,500 cases in Q1 2025
For COD scams, Faris explained that perpetrators often pose as delivery personnel and persuade victims to pay for a parcel by claiming it was ordered by their pouse or another family member. — Freepik PETALING JAYA: Online shoppers are urged to stay vigilant as Ninja Van Malaysia said it has received over 3,500 parcel scam reports in the first quarter of 2025 – the highest number recorded by the company compared to any previous quarter. In 2024, the company recorded more than 17,000 parcel scam cases with 40% of incidents concentrated in the Klang Valley. The majority of such cases involve cash-on-delivery (COD) schemes, where consumers end up paying for items they never ordered. Other common tactics include "ghost scams", in which victims are tricked into purchasing non-existent products or services advertised online, and phishing attempts via text messages or SMS where the sender impersonated the company. "At Ninja Van Malaysia, our responsibilities go beyond logistics. As a key player in the industry, we have a duty to educate the public against the rising scam threats," said chief executive officer Lin Zheng in a ScamMinar panel discussion held today (June 12). Chief sales officer Faris Maswan said victims were mostly from the older generation, who got duped into purchasing items like herbal products and amulets that were promoted on social media. They either end up not receiving the item at all or received products that were different from what was advertised. It's always a case of items being offered at a price that is just too good to be true, he said, adding that victims could end up losing up to RM1,000 in some cases. "Most of the time, it hovers around RM200," he added. For COD scams, Faris explained that perpetrators often pose as delivery personnel and persuade victims to pay for a parcel by claiming it was ordered by the victim's spouse or another family member. "Scammers would exploit the sense of familiarity that victims have for the person they think the parcel is for," said Raymon Ram, a fraud risk management specialist and president of NGO Transparency International-Malaysia. Faris explained that in phishing cases, victims would receive an SMS claiming they had an undelivered Ninja Van parcel: "Victims are then directed to a fraudulent website designed to steal money from their bank accounts." When these incidents were reported, Faris said an internal investigation was launched to determine whether there had been a data breach involving its customers. "Our infosec team found out that scammers were obtaining personal data from a website hosting leaked information from various sources. We also found that customers of other courier services were targeted by similar scams," he said. Raymon added that scammers can obtain users' personal data from forums on the dark web and use the information to carry out various schemes. "The newly enforced Cyber Security Act 2024 requires organisations in critical sectors to report any breaches to the National Cyber Security Agency. We'll have to see what kind of impact this will have. I hope companies will start taking cybersecurity more seriously," he said. Faris said cases would also be investigated based on customer service complaint rate. "If it's a critical case with directive from the authorities, we would block accounts (on their platform related to fraudulent complaints). In the last quarter, we have blocked more accounts than before," Faris said, adding that he also urged victims to come forward and make reports to the right channels as part of a measure to protect other users. The Selangor deputy head of Commercial Crime Investigation Department (Intelligence/Operation) Yap Huat Tian said it's also crucial for more people to be vigilant about their online safety and privacy. Don't assume that it's only older generation that can get scammed. As long as you have a smartphone, you can be a victim, he said.
