Cops Nab 9 Men Attempting To Illegally Explore Rare Earths In Sik

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Kedah police chief Fisol Salleh said the suspects would face charges of entering the forest reserve without a permit and for various immigration offences. (Bernama pic)ALOR SETAR: Police arrested nine local men and foreign nationals who were attempting to explore rare earth elements (REE) in Compartment 35, Rimba Teloi Forest Reserve, in Sik, on Sept 14.
Kedah police chief Fisol Salleh said the suspects, in their 30s and 60s, would face charges of entering the forest reserve without a permit and also for various immigration offences.
“On Sept 14, police and a team from the Kedah forestry department carried out ‘Op Bersepadu’ in the Sik forest reserve area and seized three vehicles in Compartment 35.
“Four locals, four Indonesians and a Chinese national found at the location were taken into custody.
“Initial investigations revealed that all of them were scouting for sites for REE exploration,” he said at the Kedah police contingent headquarters today.
He said all the suspects failed to provide any permission letters to explore REE resources in the area and to enter the Rimba Teloi Forest Reserve.
“The five foreign nationals entered the country using work permits. However, these work permits were not intended for working in Kedah, so they had misused the documents.
“We believe they entered the area four months ago to explore REE. Their activities were still in the early stages, unrelated to REE in the Bukit Enggang Forest Reserve, Sik,” he added.
Meanwhile, Fisol said police arrested a local man along with eight Myanmar nationals in Changlun on Sept 20 and foiled a migrant smuggling operation.
This came after police stopped a car with six people in Taman Hosba, Changlun. Further arrests were made at a plantation in Kampung Cherok Mokan nearby. - FMT

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