A foreign married couple and several agents were arrested in Ops Serkap at a flat in Pasir Gudang, Johor, early yesterday.

Berenama quoted Johor immigration director Baharuddin Tahir as saying that the arrests followed checks on four people.

They subsequently detained a 44-year-old Bangladeshi man and a 37-year-old Indonesian woman at 1.15am.

He said 13 passports belonging to Bangladesh and Indian nationals were found hidden in a cupboard. Cash amounting to RM34,983 was also seized.

“The syndicate’s main target were foreigners, mainly Bangladesh citizens, who had problems applying for work permit extensions as well as registering for the Labour Recalibration Programme (RTK) 2.0.”

Baharuddin said the syndicate charged RM2,500 to RM3,000 for each application.

He said they were investigating whether the confiscated permits were genuine or fake.

The woman is being investigated under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 (Act 155), while the man was detained under Section 55E of the same Act and Section 12(1)(f) of the Passports Act 1966.

Baharuddin advised the public to avoid middlemen or agents and to deal directly with the immigration office if they required immigration facilities to avoid being cheated.

In October, Johor immigration had busted another syndicate involved in forging temporary work permits for foreign workers in Gelang Patah near Johor Bahru.

They arrested four Bangladeshi men, one Nepalese and a Bangladeshi, who is a Malaysian permanent resident.

They also seized four Indian passports, a computer, a printer, six mobile phones, a set of suspected fake travel documents and permits, and cash amounting to RM320.

Baharuddin believes the gang was involved in the forgery of travel documents, flight tickets, e-visa and registration services with the labour department for the past year, raking profits amounting to tens of thousands of ringgit.