High Court sentences Indonesian man to jail for transporting undocumented migrants into S’wak

By Dorcas Ting

KUCHING, July 15: The High Court today sentenced an Indonesian man to two years in prison for transporting undocumented migrants into Sarawak from Indonesia via Lundu earlier this year.

The accused, Jono Lamiri, 39, was convicted after pleading guilty to a charge under Section 26J of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007, which carries a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment, a fine up to RM250,000, or both upon conviction.

The offence took place at around 7.45am on February 12, 2025, when Jono was caught transporting four undocumented migrants in a sedan along a road leading from the ICQS Biawak border area toward Lundu.

According to the case facts, immigration officers conducting Ops Serkap stopped a suspicious-looking Toyota Camry near the border checkpoint. Jono was identified as the driver, and four Indonesian nationals—Muslimun (45), Rusnah (46), Mansyur (34), and Narwadi Bukhairi (30)—were found inside the vehicle.

Investigations revealed that Muslimun and Rusnah had previous records of entering Malaysia in 2022 and 2023, while the other two had no valid travel documents.

The court was told that Jono had facilitated their illegal entry into Sarawak by road.

High Court Judge Leonard David Shim handed down the sentence after considering the accused’s guilty plea and the facts presented.

Jono was not represented by a lawyer, while the prosecution was led by Deputy Public Prosecutor Kong Siew Chuo. — DayakDaily

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