KUALA LUMPUR: An illegal settlement for illegal migrants complete with a functioning convenience store and other amenities in Sentul was raided by the authorities early this morning.
Led by the Immigration Department and other authorities consisting of the police and their General Operations Force (GOF), Kuala Lumpur City Hall, the Malaysian Civil Defence Force and National Registration Department began securing the perimeter at 12.30am before making their way inside the compound situated near the Duke Highway.
The illegal settlement consisting of 20 to 30 units of homes, complete with facilities such as toilets, convenience stores, livestock pens, water and electricity supply, was built on a government reserve land.
It was understood that land was occupied illegally around three to four years ago with its inhabitants allegedly paying "rent" of RM400 a month to the "landlord."
The joint raid by the authorities ended at around 3am, with 124 foreign nationals inspected.
Immigration Department director-general Datuk Ruslin Jusoh said following the inspection, it was found that the foreign nationals were from Myanmar, Indonesia and India.
"Out of these, 95 were from Myanmar, including 14 boys and 18 girls with their mothers, who we believe the majority are of Rohingyan descent.
"There were also three Indonesians and several other foreign nationals.
"We also inspected 21 Indian nationals who had just returned from work and they had valid work permits."
He added that the raid found two main offences which were the lack of proper documentation with some having no passports or expired work passes and overstaying.
"Those in the raid without any valid documents or work passes will face immigration action and detention whereas those who possess the United Nations High Commissioner For Refugees (UNHCR) cards will be referred to the UNHCR for further action.
"We will document all of them first for tonight and conduct further verification tomorrow. Only after that, will we determine how many will be detained based on their documents."
Ruslin said that during the inspections, authorities found five "convenience stores" catering to the community.
"They were selling items like betel leaves and subsidised goods such as cooking oil.
"They also claimed to be renting this place from locals and as such, the Immigration Department will work with the Kuala Lumpur City Hall and other agencies to identify who rented out this land, which is government reserve land."
Ruslin added that the department will continue collaborating with other agencies to tackle the influx of foreign nationals flooding the capital.
"We will take similar actions in other areas in collaboration with other authorities to ensure that only those with valid travel and work documents reside in our capital and country."
