RANTAU PANJANG: Smugglers operating along the Kelantan/Thai border are using teenagers and women as informants on the movements of enforcement officers.
This is the new tactic identified by the General Operations Force (GOF) of the Seventh Battalion which took over responsibilities for the border on Sept 15.
GOF Seventh Battalion commanding officer Superintendent Azhari Nusi said the teenagers and women also acted as “tontos” for the smugglers.
“The smugglers are now becoming smarter. They are willing to spend money by hiring teenagers and women to become their informants.
“They will monitor and alert their leaders on the officers’ movements.”
“This has been going on all this while, but it will not hamper our efforts to track them down one by one,” he said at GOF’s tactical base in Lubok Setol here today.
Azhari said the battalion would ensure that no members of the public were harmed during operations.
“The smugglers will normally change their tactics or modus operandi.
“They will drive at full speed when passing the shortcut routes to deliver the smuggled goods.
“This worries us... as we are afraid they might hit someone on the road, especially in Kuala Jambu,” he said, adding that the number of tontos had risen due to high demand for smuggled goods.
Azhari estimated that more than 300 tontos were operating actively along the Kelantan/Thai border.