KUANTAN, Aug 7 – Police have detained 48 owners and workers of Musang King durian plantations involved in the illegal occupation of land belonging to the Pahang State Agricultural Development Corporation (PKPP) in Raub during Ops Sekat, which commenced in April.
Pahang police chief Datuk Seri Yahaya Othman said those arrested, aged between 20 and 67, also included foreigners comprising 12 Indonesians, seven from Myanmar, two from Bangladesh and three from Nepal.
“Police have opened three investigation papers under Section 447 of the Penal Code. The arrests are also being referred to and investigated by other agencies such as the Pahang State Enforcement Unit (UPNP) and the relevant district forest office.
“The operation will continue to prevent further encroachment. It seems that during the fruit season, individuals take matters into their own hands to access the land. We are enforcing the court order to prevent this, as the court has confirmed that the land belongs to the state government,” he said.
He told reporters this when asked about the recent arrest of two local men and a foreign woman for trespassing on PKPP land to harvest durians last Friday.
The individuals, aged between 40 and 50, were brought to the Raub district police headquarters for investigation under Section 447 of the Penal Code. However, they were released on police bail after the documentation process was completed.
In July, 131 Musang King durian farmers from Raub failed in their attempt to gain access to their durian orchards while awaiting the outcome of their appeal against an eviction order.
This follows a Court of Appeal decision to dismiss the farmers’ application to vary a judge’s order that had disallowed them from entering the orchards to maintain and cultivate their durian trees.
