Bukit Aman team going to Pakistan over 130 detained Malaysians

 Fifty-nine are from Sabah, 57 from Sarawak, and the rest from Johor, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Kelantan.

Bukit Aman CCID director Rusdi Isa said 107 of the Malaysians had overstayed their visas in Pakistan. (Bernama pic)

KUALA LUMPUR:

Bukit Aman’s commercial crime investigation department (CCID) will send a team of officers to Pakistan soon to obtain further information regarding the detention of 130 Malaysians in Rawalpindi last month.

Its director, Rusdi Isa, said the team will meet Pakistani authorities, record statements, and analyse devices seized following a raid on an alleged cyber scam centre.

He said examining the evidence was very important to uncover the syndicate’s modus operandi, including the use of Malaysian police uniforms to deceive victims.

“We need to arrange a meeting to obtain statements from the authorities there, in addition to examining the evidence or devices seized.

“We also want to obtain more information about the parties who brought them to Pakistan,” he said at a press conference here today.

Rusdi said police were only informed about the arrests at the end of October through the home ministry’s official channels and their counterparts in Pakistan, even though they were detained on Oct 13.

He said the identities of the Malaysians were confirmed through cooperation among the police, embassies and Interpol.

He said 59 were from Sabah, 57 from Sarawak, and the rest from Johor, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Kelantan.

“Checks found that 92 of them do not have criminal records in Malaysia. The others have records for various offences including drugs, fraud and gambling.

“Two of them are wanted by the police in connection with fraud cases in Sabah.”

He added that 107 of them had overstayed their visas in Pakistan, while 20 had valid visas, two had visa extensions, and one did not have valid travel documents.

The Malaysians involved arrived in Pakistan in stages between June 8 and Sept 29, with the highest number of arrivals recorded on Aug 3, totalling 53.

Previously, Pakistani authorities raided a premises at Kasa Tower, Bahria Town Phase VIII, Rawalpindi, which was used as a call centre for financial fraud, targeting victims in Malaysia.

The syndicate reportedly impersonated bank customer service officers and police to trap victims through false money laundering allegations. - FMT