SANDAKAN: A 12-hour large-scale immigration crackdown saw 238 undocumented migrants detained here early Wednesday.
Sabah Immigration Department Director Datuk Sh Sitti Saleha Habib Yussof said a total of 480 individuals were screened during the operation which began around 1.30am and ended before noon.
The integrated operation, codenamed “Ops Sapu” and “Ops Mahir”, targeted squatter settlements, construction sites and wood-processing factories at four hotspots, including Batu 8 and Batu 10 settlements.
The operation involved 71 officers from the Sandakan, Tawau, Lahad Datu and Kota Kinabalu districts, as well as the department’s enforcement division.
“The 238 people detained comprise 88 adult men, 88 adult women, 30 boys and 32 girls,” she said.
They were detained for not possessing valid documents under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63, overstaying under Section 15(1)(c), misuse of passes under Section 39(b) and employing undocumented migrants under Section 55B, among other offences.
Of that number, 6,058 individuals have been deported to their countries of origin, while 53 employers have been prosecuted.
“We remind employers in Sabah to cooperate by ensuring that their workers have valid travel documents before hiring them, especially in factories or the construction sector, to avoid facing legal action,” said Sitti.
She said such enforcement operations will continue in districts, including Semporna, Kota Kinabalu, Tawau and Sandakan, to uphold immigration laws across the State.
She warned that action will be taken against employers and premises owners found hiring undocumented foreigners or individuals violating the conditions of their passes.
Sitti advised employers to only hire foreign workers through legal channels, saying enforcement operations will be intensified to combat the presence of undocumented migrants.
