Illegal immigrant gets unexpected ‘mud bath’ while fleeing
MELAKA: An Indonesian illegal immigrant fleeing from immigration enforcement officers received an unexpected ‘mud bath’ when he fell into a large patch of mud near the Melaka Strait off Bandar Hilir here yesterday.
His road to ‘freedom’ came to an abrupt end when he found himself chest-deep in the mud in Pulau Melaka in the 10.15am incident.
For nearly two hours, the suspect who worked at a hotel construction site nearby, found himself trapped.
Kubu Fire and Rescue Department chief, Deputy Supt Khairuddin Jamaludin said firemen - summoned by the state immigration department for assistance - came to the illegal’s rescue.
He said it took about 90 minutes to locate the man before freeing him from the mud before he was detained.
“Priority was given to rescue the Indonesian illegal as he was at the edge of the water and we feared he might drown if the tide rose.
“It was quite difficult to pull him ashore as part of his body was buried deep in the mud.
“Six of the fire department’s Water Rescue Team personnel had to crawl using rescue equipment such as ropes, f loating board and buoys to pull the man, weighing between 90kg and 100kg, to safety,” he told reporters here.
Three other il legal immigrants, believed to be Bangladeshis, who had also fled together with the Indonesian during the immigration raid, could not be located.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian immigrant, in his 20s, from Central Java, told the authorities he fled from immigration officers as he had expired travel documents.
“I entered Malaysia via Johor last month. During the incident, I was working in the basement before realising an inspection was being carried out and straightway jumped into the sea to escape,” he said.
Melaka Immigration Department senior assistant director Mohamed Lamsah Othman said the man was among 145 foreign nationals, aged between 20 and 45, who were nabbed at the construction site.
He said those arrested comprised nine women, 68 Indonesian men, 59 Bangladeshis, four Pakistanis, four Myanmars and a Nepalese.
Seventy-six of them had entered and stayed in the country without permits, 66 had violated the terms of their passes, permits or border passes, while three are believed to have stayed on in the country after their passes or permits had expired. - Bernama