‘ Underground’ GROs nabbed in secret room
> Cops discover foreign women in hideout with metal doors beneath entertainment outlet
IPOH: Police uncovered an underground hideout housing 38 female guest relations officers (GROs) from China and Vietnam in a raid on an entertainment outlet in Medan Ipoh yesterday.
Bukit Aman Special Tactical Squad Anti-Vice, Gambling and Gangsterism (Stagg) operations chief Supt Fazlisyam Abdul Majid said the seven-hour operation, which started at midnight, found two secret underground rooms used as hideouts for the women, in their 20s and 30s.
“The premises was locked during the raid and we had to break the door.
“On seeing the police team, eight Vietnamese women and 30 Chinese nationals hid in two underground rooms.
“We sought the help of firefighters to bring out all the women because the rooms had metal doors with a hydraulic system and it took about four hours to open the doors,” he said.
The rooms were two metres high with an area of 500sq ft and equipped with mattresses, air conditioning, food and refreshments.
Fazlisyam said the premises had previously been raided at least seven times.
“This is the first time a raid has been carried out involving people hiding underground. Before this, they just hid in the store, behind the walls and in the ceiling.
In the operation, police also detained 15 employees and 15 customers for further investigations while police are tracing the owner of the premises. The outlet had been operating for over two years and charged RM3,000 to RM5,000 for booking of a karaoke room.
The raiding team comprised six officers and 16 members of the Stagg squad and seven firefighters from Ipoh. – Bernama