The three, aged between 30 and 48, were arrested yesterday at the Pasir Gudang ferry terminal here.

Johor police chief Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay said the syndicate was believed to be providing fake immigration inbound and outbound stamp services for use by migrants using social visit passes that had expired before the movement control order came into force.

According to the investigation, migrants were charged between RM1,500 and RM2,500 each.

“As they arrived at the Pasir Gudang ferry terminal, the movement of migrants using counterfeit stamps would be handled by an immigration officer cooperating with the syndicate to manage their return home to Indonesia,” he said.

Khan said the smuggling syndicate had been active since early May when the government implemented the conditional movement control order. It offered services for those heading to Batam, Indonesia, from the Pasir Gudang ferry terminal.

Khan said a 41-year-old marine police officer at the Marine Operations Headquarters in Putrajaya was also arrested on June 19 for allegedly engaging in migrant smuggling syndicates since 2017.

With the latest arrests, he said they have now detained 14 police officers and personnel, five members of the armed forces and three immigration officers suspected of conspiring with migrant smuggling syndicates, especially on the east coast of the state.

Fake or not? Check our quick fake news buster here.