Cleaning company owners among 34 detained over suspected worker exploitation
KUALA LUMPUR: The Immigration Department detained 34 people, including three company owners, in a coordinated operation at several locations around the capital today, following the activities of a cleaning service company suspected of employing foreign workers without valid documents.
On a recent operation in Kuala Lumpur, the Immigration Department apprehended 34 individuals, including three company owners, as part of an investigation into a suspected cleaning service company's exploitation of foreign workers. Director-General Datuk Zakaria Shaaban disclosed that 31 Indonesian nationals, comprising 27 women and four men, were among those detained, alongside three local owners.
The company allegedly employed foreign workers without valid documents, withheld their passports, paid them below RM1,500, and subjected them to various forms of abuse, including denied overtime, fines, and forced control over their movements. The company had a history of employee desertion due to the alleged exploitation. In addition to the 34 detainees, authorities seized 20 passports, RM9,400 in cash, and computer equipment related to the company's operations.
The operation involved collaboration between various government agencies, including the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act unit, the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act unit, the National Financial Crime Centre, the Peninsular Malaysia Labour Department, the Inland Revenue Board, and the Companies Commission of Malaysia.
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