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SEMPORNA: A total of 61 Filipinos, believed to be illegal immigrants, were detained in an integrated operation coordinated by Esscom, here.

Esscom Commander DCP Datuk Victor Sanjos said the operation on Thursday involved various agencies, including the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM), Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM) and Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA), as well as federal and state agencies, including local authorities.

The operation in Semporna town areas, including squatter settlements and villages, aimed to combat the smuggling activities of controlled and subsidised items, as well as to curb illegal immigrants and abuse of tourist passes by foreigners.

“During the operation, a total of 1,125 individuals and 375 premises, including hotels and resorts, were inspected.

“This resulted in the arrest of 61 individuals. All those detained were handed over to the Immigration Department for further action under Section 6(1)(c) and Section 15(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63,” he said.

During the operation, Sabah Electricity also cut off illegal electricity connections and seized materials weighing almost 40kg under Section 61(3) of the Electricity Supply Enactment 2024.

Victor said security operations were also carried out on routes often used by criminals near the land and water borders.

He added that Esscom will continue to intensify such integrated operations in Esszone districts to curb any cross-border criminal elements that may threaten public safety.

He called on the public to channel information regarding any security incidents in Esszone to the Esscom Operations Centre at 089-863181 or via WhatsApp at 011-63311072.

Meanwhile, the Sabah Immigration Department detained 35 illegal immigrants during enforcement operations codenamed Ops Sapu and Ops Jaja in Lahad Datu and Kota Kinabalu.

The department, in a statement, said during the operation in Lahad Datu, a total of 111 individuals comprising Malaysian, Indonesian and Filipino were inspected.

“This resulted in the detention of 31 of them (foreigners) suspected of committing various offences under the Immigration Act 1959/63.

“They comprised three men, 12 women and 16 children. Among the offences are not having identification documents, overstaying and violating the pass terms under Section 6(1)(c) and Section 15(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63,” it added.

In the Kota Kinabalu operation, four illegal immigrants comprising two men and two women were detained for committing offences under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.