Nine Malaysians, four Indonesians and four Sri Lankans accused of people smuggling

Malaysian police have intercepted a tanker with 131 Sri Lankans believed bound for Australia and New Zealand, destroying an alleged human smuggling ring that has been operating for over a year.

Authorities halted the modified tanker on Tuesday off the coast of southern Johor state, national police chief Mohamad Fuzi Harun said. He said the immigrants included 98 men, 24 women, four boys and five girls.

Police also raided a fishing boat used to transport the migrants to the vessel and detained three Indonesians and four Malaysians on board, he said. Another five Malaysians were nabbed for suspected involvement in the smuggling syndicate.

“This syndicate has been operating since mid-2017 and has international connections across Sri Lanka, Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia and Malaysia,” Fuzi said.

A total of 127 Sri Lankans will be charged for entering Malaysia illegally while nine Malaysians, four Indonesians and four Sri Lankans will be investigated for human smuggling, he added.

A spokesman from the Australian Department of Home Affairs said the incident showed the “enduring threat that people smuggling poses across our region”.

“We applaud Malaysia’s disruption of this venture and look forward to ongoing cooperation to combat people smuggling,” he said.