SHAH ALAM: Selangor Immigration Department has started raiding car wash centres in the state as part of the swoop on illegal workers following the expiration of the e-kad application on July 1.
A series of 'Ops Ikrar' raids were conducted in Dengkil, Banting and Bangi earlier this month where enforcement teams stormed 28 car wash centres on July 8, 10 and 11, said the department director Omran Omar.
"In the operations which were conducted from 3pm to 7pm, 87 illegal workers were screened.
"A total of 52 illegals, including three women, were arrested for flouting immigration laws namely for overstaying, abusing their passes and possessing invalid documents. The three women were working at eateries adjacent to the car wash centres.
"They are aged between 22 and 45, and came from Indonesia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Nepal and Thailand. They were taken to our office, here, to be investigated under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act," said Omran today.
Omran was met during the department's Semarak Aidilfitri celebrations held at its headquarters at Dewan Kemajuan PKNS.
The department also hosted 20 children from the National Autism Society of Malaysia during the celebrations.
Omran added that the raids were carried out following complaints from the public on the high number of illegal foreign workers hired by car wash operators.
"Car wash operators are prohibited from hiring foreign workers because the nature of their work does not come under the services sector that are allowed by the government," said Omran.
From July 1 to 20, a total of 355 illegals, including 7 children, were arrested in 'Ops Ikrar' raids. This was following checks on 1,087 foreign workers at 40 premises across the state.
So far, only one employer has been charged in court for hiring illegal immigrants.
On July 6, a 45-year-old bakery owner, Hamdam Ismail was charged at the Sepang Sessions Court for employing 18 Indonesian and a Bangladeshi immigrant without valid documents at Kedai Kek Harissa in Taman Pinggiran USJ 1/11 in Subang Jaya.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge before judge Saiful Akmal Mohd Said.
The charge under Section 55B (3) of the Immigration Act 1959/1963 carries a jail term of not less than six months and not more than five years and shall be liable for whipping not more than six strokes , if convicted.
The judge fixed Aug 8 for mention.