Worker smuggling attempt foiled

AMBON, Maluku: (Antara): Local police foiled an attempt to illegally send 30 Indonesian workers to Sabah, Malaysia, on Tuesday.

Chief of the Ambon police, Lt. Col. Susno Duadji, said yesterday they also arrested a broker, Theodorus Lapia Daornai, who is believed to be responsible for the illegal scheme.

Seventeen of the 30 workers have been detained for questioning, Antara reported.

Duadji said police, acting on a tip, raided a house on Jl. Diponegoro here where the workers were staying.

During the raid, the police found that the workers did not possess any travel document.

He said Daornai had allegedly promised the workers that if everything went smoothly they would soon be employed in oil palm plantations and forestry projects in Sabah.