Inspector-General of Police Khalid Ismail also said that 515 people, both local and foreign, aged between 16 and 70, were nabbed for various offences.

He said Op Hazard 3.0 involved 11 states and had crippled several e-waste syndicates believed to be interlinked.

The raids also saw authorities seize 377 tonnes of processed materials such as aluminium, copper and tin worth RM7.57 million as well as 1,925 tonnes of scrap materials worth RM11.68 million.

Khalid said the e-waste originated from multiple regions but was vague on the details.

“It can be said that the e-waste comes from all over the world. However, we have identified several source countries.

“Sometimes it comes from the West, and sometimes from the East,” he said at a press conference.

Khalid said the syndicates bringing in the e-waste did so by falsely declaring the contents in containers.

“We have conducted many raids — 110 in total — and identified 42 illegal factories.

“In some cases, they may involve the same players,” he said, adding that police were now working to determine the extent of the networks and links.