IMMIGRATION DEPARTMENT BOLSTERS OPERATIONAL TACTICS TO CURB ‘TONTO’ SYNDICATES

PUTRAJAYA, Feb 26 (Bernama) -- The Immigration Department (JIM) has further tightened its operational strategies to curb the activities of middlemen syndicates, known as ‘tonto’, believed to be undermining the department’s enforcement efforts at all levels.

Immigration director-general Datuk Zakaria Shaaban said monitoring of tonto activities is conducted continuously, as the issue is not new and is also faced by other enforcement agencies in the country.

“Whenever we carry out any operation, we will plan our strategies carefully to avoid being detected by the tonto,” he told reporters after the Semarak Ramadan programme here today.

Zakaria said if individuals involved in such activities are identified, reports will be lodged with the relevant enforcement agencies for further action.

He said tonto activities are among the factors contributing to the failure of certain operations, as information on the movement of enforcement teams is leaked in advance, allowing targeted parties to escape.

“We organise our strategies so that our movements cannot be read by anyone. Even among our own officers, not everyone is aware of the operational movements and strategies,” he said.

When asked whether tonto activities were among the factors behind the influx of illegal immigrants in the country, he said there were many other contributing factors.

“Tonto activities to some extent hamper our enforcement efforts. When they obtain early information about our movements, it causes our operations to fail,” he added.

Yesterday, the media reported that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) uncovered a list of enforcement officers suspected of receiving bribes from middlemen syndicates known as tonto, which was crippled during a recent raid.

-- BERNAMA