TEN men, including five Indonesians, were charged in the Ipoh Sessions Court today with smuggling migrants into the country last month.

They are five local men, namely, Tan Ke Huat, 52;  S. Ananthan, 48; S. Sivalingam, 47; P.A. Suresh, 38, and Mohd Johan Musa, 38.

The five Indonesians are Eko Rahmadani, 22; Tuah, 23; Erfanni, 32; Klau Nofrianus Erick, 34, and Siprianus Nahak Lutan, 36.

All of them pleaded not guilty when the charges were read out simultaneously before judge Azizah Ahmad.

According to the charge sheet, they were charged together with a common intention of having smuggled in 35 Indonesian migrants, at the Batu 10 oil palm plantation area in Segari, Manjung, between June 20 and 30.

The charges are framed under section 26A of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007, read together with section 34 of the penal code, which provides for a prison sentence of not more than 20 years and a fine, or both, if convicted.

Deputy public prosecutor Afiqah Izzati Mazlan appeared for the prosecution, while lawyer Mohamad Khazali Yin represented Eko Rahmadani; lawyer Raja Segaran represented Tan, Suresh and Sivalingam while lawyer Kashvinder Singh represented Ananthan. The other five accused were unrepresented.

Afiqah Izzati requested a period of two months to record the statements of all 35 migrants at the Manjung magistrate’s court and to file the case at the High Court.

The three lawyers requested that bail be allowed for their clients, but no bail money was offered as it is not under the purview of the Sessions Court to hear bail applications in the case.

The court then set September 25 for the case to be transferred to the High Court.

On June 30, the media reported that 35 illegal immigrants, who hid in oil palm plantations when they first landed on the coast of Segari, Manjung, were arrested after police received information about a boat stranded on the coast, which was said to be boarded by foreigners.

The search of the plantation found a group of illegal immigrants – 24 men, 10 women and a child – hiding, before the police arrested two local men at a seafood restaurant near Kampung Bharu, Manjung. – Bernama, July 25, 2023.