Immigration to probe company director's allegation of assault during raid

The Immigration Department will give its full cooperation to the police over an allegation by a director of a foreign worker agency that he was assaulted by an immigration officer while in custody.

Immigration director-general Ruslin Jusoh said that the department would wait for a detailed report from its Kuala Lumpur branch regarding the incident and scrutinise the allegation.

“If there is evidence of SOP (standard operating procedure) violation or abuse of power by the officer involved, stern action will be taken.

“The department takes seriously cases of abuse of power involving immigration officers and will not compromise on any officer found flouting the SOP as it tarnishes the good name and image of the department,” Ruslin (above) said in a statement yesterday.

The department issued the statement after a news portal reported that a director of a foreign worker agency, which is believed to be the mastermind of a begging syndicate, claimed that he was beaten by immigration officers while being detained during an enforcement operation on Tuesday.

Yesterday, the man lodged a police report claiming assault by immigration officers during a raid on June 25.

Mohd Isa Karim, 41, claimed he was visiting a friend in a building at Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah when the raid was conducted, and he was allegedly beaten by immigration officers who accused him of being the mastermind of a syndicate using foreign nationals and children to beg in Kuala Lumpur.

According to him, he was handcuffed, blindfolded, and beaten by the officers who forced him to confess to the alleged crime, and as a result, he sustained injuries to his face, ears, and back.

Isa said he is getting legal advice on the matter.

On June 25, the Kuala Lumpur Immigration Department crippled a syndicate that exploited foreigners and children to beg around the federal capital during a raid at Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah.

It was discovered that children as young as 10 months to six years old were given medicine that was believed to induce sleep before being taken by the adults to beg on streets such as Jalan Chow Kit, Jalan Masjid India and Jalan Sentul in the mornings.

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