By Dorcas Ting
KUCHING, June 10: The High Court here today sentenced two Indonesian men to two years in prison for transporting migrants from their home country into Malaysia through Kampung Biawak, Sarawak.
Narwadi Mansur and Heri Mansur both pleaded guilty to the amended charge under Section 26J of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants (Atipsom) Act 2007, read together with Section 34 of the Penal Code.
Upon conviction, the charge carries a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to RM250,000, or both.
Judge Dato Dr Alwi Abdul Wahab ordered that the prison sentences for both defendants begin from the date of their arrests on April 18, 2023.
According to the charge sheet, the two men jointly transported eight migrants into the country using a multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) via an unauthorised route outside the ICQS Biawak exit, Kampung Biawak, Lundu, at around 5.45am on April 18, 2023.
Case facts revealed that a team of Immigration enforcement officers, conducting an operation named Ops Serkap, detained a suspicious Toyota Veloz MPV at the scene. Upon inspection, they discovered the two accused were transporting eight migrants identified as Norhali, 26, Musliha, 33, Hobir, 28, Abdussalam, 26, Suriadi, 20, Mohamad Harris, 25, Masrudi, 33, and Yusuf, 28.
A further examination revealed that Norhali and Musliha had previous records of entering Malaysia, while the others had no travel records.
All eight migrants were prosecuted under the Immigration Act 1959/63 and sentenced accordingly.
Investigations concluded that Narwadi and Heri were facilitating the entry of the eight Indonesian nationals into the country through Sarawak.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Kong Siew Chuo appeared for the prosecution, while the defendants were represented by lawyers Steven Beti and Gerald Empaling Donald. — DayakDaily
