373 Chinese nationals charged with not having immigration passes
Out of this total, 290 sentenced to 4 months’ jail while 31 others were fined RM5,000.
SEPANG: A total of 373 Chinese nationals were charged in the Sessions Court here today for being in the country without valid passes.
They were among 680 Chinese nationals reported arrested in an immigration bust for suspected online cheating operations conducted in Cyberjaya on Nov 20.
The charge under the Immigration Act 1959/63 was read out to all 373 detainees in batches in Mandarin by four translators from the Immigration Department.
The three-hour-long proceedings took place before judge Tengku Shahrizam Tuan Lah.
Of those charged today, 321 pleaded guilty.
Out of this number, 290 were sentenced to four months’ imprisonment from the date of arrest, while 31 others were fined RM5,000 and ordered to be deported. They also faced four months’ imprisonment if their fines were not paid.
The remaining 52, among the 373 charged today, will have their cases mentioned again on Jan 10 to enable checks on the authenticity of their passports.
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In the 3.30pm raid on a six-storey building on Nov 20, more than 100 others managed to escape.