The department’s director-general Mustafar Ali, in an exclusive interview with Berita Harian, said it had become difficult for their officers to stem the activities of human trafficking syndicates as there were locals in cahoots with them.
“Every time our department conducts raids, including at the border, there will be parties that tip off the smugglers, and the activities would stop for a while.
“Hence, I suggest drastic measures be taken, including setting up a “Bounty Hunter” squad (to round up illegals) like the ones in the United States, Mexico and other countries,” Mustafar was quoted as saying.
Mustafar said the time had come for the department to “gain an upper hand” in the fight against illegals, as many of those who worked with the syndicates were lured by the cash rewards offered by the smugglers.
He said the rewards were believed to be up to RM2,500 for one illegal immigrant brought into the country.
“It may be difficult for some people to say no to such lucrative rewards. That is why, if the authorities can give out rewards as well, we can get the people to work for us, instead of against us.”
Mustafar said “employing” such bounty hunters would work in favour of the department, which faced logistics and manpower issues, and that it would not impose additional financial burdens on the government, if implemented simultaneously, nationwide.
He added that the department welcomed feedback from all parties to help them decide whether to proceed with the plan or scrap it.
Mustafar also proposed the setting up of a common database containing details of foreigners, which would be accessible to all parties, including banks.
“Forged documents can easily be traced via online checks with the National Registration Department data. For instance, a foreigner with a fake MyKad can be detected and stopped from opening a bank account, and arrested, if such a common platform exists.
“Stemming the flow of illegals at the border alone does not suffice. Flies will keep coming in as long as there is a carcass. We have to get rid of the carcass, not try and stop the flies.”