Op Pagar Laut: Sabah records 16 cases
Published on: Wednesday, March 27, 2024
By: Jonathan Nicholas
Hamid (middle) handing over a Hari Raya gift to a commanding officer.
Kota Kinabalu: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) recorded 50 arrests with seizures valued at more than RM4.5 million in just one week into a special nationwide operation dubbed “Op Pagar Laut”.
MMEA Director-General Maritime Admiral Datuk Hamid Mohd Amin said 16 cases were recorded in Sabah and Labuan waters with seizures worth almost RM400,000.
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“Most cases involve the smuggling of subsidised goods out of the country,” he said during a review of the operation in Sabah on board KM Arau, here, on Monday.
The arrests were for various offences under the Fisheries, Immigration, Supply Control, Customs, Dangerous Drugs and the Communications and Multimedia Acts, as well as the Merchant Shipping Ordinance and the Sabah Ports and Docks Department Enactment.
Also present were Deputy Director-General of Maritime Operations, Rear Maritime Admiral Mohd Zawawi Abdullah, Sabah and Labuan Maritime Director, First Admiral Datuk Che Engku Suhaimi Che Engku Daik, and Maritime Criminal Investigation Division Director, First Maritime Admiral Ahmad Faridi Ferdaus.
The breaking of fast event on board a 50-year-old Japanese made ship was also attended by all Sabah and Labuan Maritime Zone commanding officers.
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Hamid said the operation was reactivated throughout the country to include Sabah and Sarawak in an effort to curb and fight cross-border criminal activities, especially in hotspot areas during the month of Ramadan.
“This special operation is carried out in four phases throughout the festive season until April 30.
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“The success is proof that the agency carries out duties with high commitment and integrity,” he said.
Hamid also intended to deliver Raya gifts to the people of KM Arau through its Commanding Officer Maritime Captain Solehudin Zakaria and to commanding officers.
“I hope the gift will cheer officers and members who are currently on duty and away from their families in conjunction with the Hari Raya festivities,” he said.
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