KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 204 summons were issued and 11 motorcycles were seized in the new year's eve traffic operation, 'Op Ambang Tahun Baharu', conducted by the Kuala Lumpur Police Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department.
The operation ran from 1am to 5am earlier at various locations around the city.
Among those caught was an 18-year-old whose dreams of watching the fireworks showcase was dashed when he was arrested for riding a motorcycle without a valid licence at the Jalan Duta toll plaza.
The teen had travelled all the way from his home in Tanjung Karang, Kuala Selangor to celebrate new year's eve with his friends.
He said the motorcycle he was riding belonged to his father, only its cover set had just been replaced with a new one.
"All my friends were already in Kuala Lumpur, and I was on my way from home to meet them for new year's eve.
"I know what I did was wrong, but this was the first time for me to celebrate the new year in Kuala Lumpur.
"I didn't know that there was an operation. I planned to get my licence next month after I receive my salary," he told Harian Metro when interviewed.
Another 18-year-old boy from Bukit Beruntung, Selangor, claimed that the registration number was at home and he didn't have time to install it when he was stopped by the police.
"I have the plate number (registration), but it's at home. I forgot to install it because I just bought this motorcycle a month ago," he said when questioned by the police.
The operation, which started at midnight, saw teenagers still willing to risk being caught riding without a licence or road tax just for the new year's celebration.
Most of the teenagers detained were found to have an expired road tax and no side mirrors, and some were even risking their lives by riding against traffic simply because they didn't have a valid driving licence.
The majority of them were in their teens and early twenties and claimed that they didn't have time or were planning to get one.
Some of them admitted that it wasn't the first time they were fined for riding without a licence.