{
  "id": 15764561,
  "title": "36 foreign workers held over fake identity cards in Johor",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/20/36-foreign-workers-held-over-fake-identity-cards-in-johor",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-20T15:30:56.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "New Straits Times",
    "slug": "new-straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2026/10/1560069/36-foreign-workers-held-over-fake-identity-cards-johor"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In the Johor Baru district of Malaysia, authorities have detained 36 foreign workers at a factory in Pasir Gudang due to suspicions that they were using forged Malaysian identity cards to obtain employment. The detainees consist of eight men and 28 women, aged between 16 and 45 years old, with suspected origins in the Philippines and Indonesia. Their arrest occurred as part of a National Registration Department (NRD) operation.\n\nInitial investigations have revealed that some of the workers reportedly acquired the identity cards for a fee of RM100. Several of them have admitted to using fake identity documents containing the details of other individuals to secure jobs. The NRD will collaborate with the Labour Department to examine the factory's involvement in this alleged fraud and decide if additional measures should be taken against the establishment, according to TV3's Buletin Utama.\n\nFurthermore, investigators will delve into the methods used by the workers to obtain the false identity cards, it was reported.",
  "summary": "JOHOR BARU: Thirty-six foreign workers were detained at a factory in Pasir Gudang over suspicions they had used fake Malaysian identity cards to work in the country.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}