2 Illegal PMI Senders From Bintan To Malaysia Arrested

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BINTAN - The Resort Police (Polres) of Bintan, Riau Islands (Kepri), arrested two perpetrators of sending illegal Indonesian migrant workers (PMI) to Malaysia, each with the initials MA (43) and AR (33).

"Both of them are secured in Berakit Village, Teluk Sebong District, Bintan Regency," said Bintan Police Chief AKBP Tidar Wulung Dahono, quoted by Antara, Friday, April 22.

The police chief said that the two perpetrators worked as fishermen on a daily basis. MA is a resident of Teluk Sebong, Bintan and AR is a resident of Moro, Karimun.

The MA actor acts as an introduction and pick-up for illegal PMIs, while AR acts as a person who orders, requests, and sends the coordinates for the delivery and pick-up of PMIs in Malaysian waters.

"During the January-April 2022 period, the Supreme Court has five times delivered illegal PMI from the people's port in Berakit Village to Malaysian waters using his wooden pompong ship," said the Head of Police.

Arriving in Malaysian waters, he continued, according to the coordinates given by AR, the illegal PMIs were transferred to a fishing trawler with a Malaysian flag and worked as crew members on the ship with a salary of 1,000 Malaysian ringgit per ten working days.

MA receives a salary of IDR 2 million from AR for every PMI delivery or pick-up he does. The money was obtained by AR by deducting the salaries of PMIs who work as crew members of Malaysian-flagged ships.

The actions of the suspects MA and AR violate Article 81 Juncto Article 69 of the Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 18 of 2017 concerning the Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers Juncto Article 55 Paragraph 1 to (1) of the Criminal Code with a maximum imprisonment of 10 years or a fine of Rp. 15 billion.

"Currently we are still developing the case," said the Bintan Police Chief.