PUTRAJAYA: A migrant smuggling syndicate known as “Iqbal” was crippled following a raid by a team of immigration officers on a safe house, says Datuk Zakaria Shaaban. “The safe house was located in a remote village, as a tactic to evade the authorities. “It was used as a transit to house migrants who were recently smuggled into the country,” he said in a statement yesterday, Bernama reported. The raid, he added, was led by a special team from the department’s Prevention Division based at its headquarters in Putrajaya, in coordination with Kelantan’s Immigration Enforcement Divi­sion. The illegal migrants were taken to a temporary safe house to settle outstanding entry fees before being transported to their final destinations.

Source: The Star January 19, 2026 00:34 UTC