November 21, 2024
KOTA KINABALU – Undocumented migrants got into a scuffle with Immigration officials during a crackdown near here.
The operation from midnight to 5am Wednesday (Nov 20) was conducted at workers’ quarters on construction sites in Tuaran and Menggatal near here, said Sabah Immigration Department director Datuk Sitti Saleha Habib Yussof.
She said department officials inspected a total of 270 people and nabbed 197 who failed to produce valid documents.
They included 195 Filipinos comprising 49 men, 54 women, 61 boys and 31 girls; and two Indonesian men.
Those detained ranged from seven months to 62 years old, Sitti Saleha added.
“The quarters were built close together on uneven hilly ground and it was muddy the whole way,” she said, adding that such living conditions were neither conducive nor safe, especially for the children.
“During our raids, the occupants ran helter-skelter with some trying to hide in bushes, playing tricks to evade capture.
“Some even got into a scuffle with our officers but luckily, no major incident occurred,” she said.
Those detained were being investigated for offences such as overstaying and lacking valid documentation and would be placed at the Papar Immigration Depot pending the probe, she added.
She said the department will continue to conduct such raids and urged the public to provide information to the authorities.