PUTRAJAYA, The Immigration Department detained 26 foreign nationals in a special operation around Perhentian Island, Terengganu on Monday, said its director-general Datuk Ruslin Jusoh. The detained individuals comprised 13 Bangladeshi men, six Myanmar men, two Pakistani men, one Nepali man, three Thai women and one Indonesian woman, aged between 22 and 50. 'Preliminary checks revealed that three Bangladeshi men, two Pakistani men and three Thai women have valid social visit passes, while the remaining individuals lacked proper travel documents or valid passes to stay in the country,' he said in a statement today. He further said that the foreigners were believed to have been involved in business activities or employed at the inspected locations for about nine months. 'The Bangladeshis were offering water taxi services, the Thais were providing spa services and the Nepalese was working as security guard at a resort,' he said. Ruslin said all the detained individuals were taken to the Ajil Immigration Dep ort for further investigation under Section 6(3) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 and Regulation 39b of the Immigration Regulations 1963. Two local men present during the raid were issued notices to appear at the Terengganu Immigration Department to assist in investigations, he added. 'The department would track down employers who hire foreign nationals without valid documents or passes to ensure stern action is taken against those who violate the Immigration Act 1959/63, Immigration Regulations 1963, Passports Act 1966 and the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007,' he said. Source: BERNAMA News Agency