PETALING JAYA: An international migrant smuggling and fake passport syndicate has been crippled after police arrested 11 people, including three Malaysians.

The arrests were made on April 30 and May 2, says Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Abdul Hamid Bador.

“We arrested two women, one of them local while the other a Sri Lankan, at KL International Airport as they were trying to fly to Europe with fake passports.

“Following that, we arrested three more Sri Lankans and a German in Kuala Lumpur,” he said in a statement yesterday.

More syndicate members, including two Malaysians and three Sri Lankans, were arrested on May 2 in Selayang, Selangor.

Out of the 11 arrested, one Sri Lankan, one German, and three Malaysians are being investigated under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma) and Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants ( Atipsom) Act 2007.

“The others are being investigated under the Immigration Act,” he said.

He added that the syndicate, which mainly involved Sri Lanka nationals, had been operating since mid-2018.

“It is a cunning group with networks in Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Europe,” he said.