Deputy Inspector-General of Police Noor Rashid Ibrahim said this followed the arrest of several syndicate members operating in Bangladesh and Kuala Lumpur.

He said the police had been investigating the smuggling of Bangladeshis from that country over the past year.

“Our investigations reveal there are three Bangladeshi syndicates which play their respective roles, namely a Bangladesh-based syndicate gathers people, another operates at KLIA to facilitate their entry and the third in Malaysia receives the smuggled (Bangladeshi) labourers.”

The syndicates tried to find ways for illegals to enter the country, including by offering bribes, Noor Rashid said at a news conference at the Equine Centre of Universiti Putra Malaysia here today.

He said police were monitoring the entry of foreigners at the KLIA and did not rule out the possibility of nabbing more syndicate masterminds in the future.

Recently, a local newspaper revealed that Bangladeshi labourers were smuggled into Malaysia on a daily basis via KLIA by four major syndicates operating in Kuala Lumpur and Dhaka, Bangladesh.

It is believed the syndicates could earn about RM5.2 million annually by charging between RM15,000 and RM20,000 for each illegal immigrant, including money to grease enforcement officers.