KUCHING: A 35-year-old man was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment by the High Court here today for transporting four smuggled Indonesian migrants in Bau last year.
Judge Wong Siong Tung handed down the sentence on Bannie Mathew after he pleaded guilty to the charge under Section 26J of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007.
The court ordered the prison sentence to take effect from August 13, 2025, the date his bail was refused.
The court also ordered that the Perodua Alza used in the offence be returned to the party lawfully entitled to possess the vehicle.
According to the charge, Bannie, as the driver of a Perodua Alza, transported four smuggled Indonesian migrants at Simpang Kampung Senibong, Jalan Tondong, Batu Kawa, Bau, at about 2:25 pm on April 26, 2025.
The four migrants were identified as Sani, 24, Anton, 30, Sanjaya, 24, and Riswanti, 36.
The facts of the case stated that an Immigration Department enforcement team conducting ‘Ops Serkap’ intercepted the vehicle and found Bannie transporting the four Indonesian nationals.
Investigations established that Bannie was the driver responsible for transporting the migrants.
Immigration Department records showed that Anton had previously entered Malaysia through the Biawak entry point on April 29, 2024, while Riswanti entered through the Tebedu entry point on February 17, 2025.
Both Anton and Riswanti were subsequently charged under Section 15(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 for overstaying, pleaded guilty, and were sentenced accordingly.
Checks also revealed that Sani and Sanjaya had no recent records of lawful entry into Malaysia.
They were charged under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 for entering the country without valid travel documents, pleaded guilty, and were also sentenced accordingly.
Bannie was represented by counsel, Steven Beti, while the prosecution was conducted by Deputy Public Prosecutor, Kong Siew Chuo.
