A-38-year old Indonesian female maid, who turned into a leader of the beggars, was arrested by authorities. The maid from Indonesia was working as a guide of a blind beggars syndicate and has been earning more than RM100 every day. She confessed during the police interrogation. The maid, who is originally from Madura in Central Java, was entered the country in 2018 on a maid’s permit.
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Maria’s Life In Malaysia
rThe maid is from Madura in Central Java, Indonesia and had come to Malaysia in 2018 on a maid’s permit. Maria worked as a maid for a year before she became a “leader” for a group of blind beggars in 2019, one of them named was Mustaqim.
During the police interrogation, the maid said that Kuala Lumpur and Shah Alam are prime locations where she was operating begging activities. She mentioned that she is easily able to earn more than RM2,000 a month and sends RM300 to her family back in the village as well as pays RM450 for the rent of her house.
She also mentioned that she earns about RM100 daily, which mostly depends on the total earning of the beggar.
She was detained under the Immigration Act 1959/63 for overstaying in the country.
Her Work As A ‘Leader’
Maria became a leader in 2019 after she had already lived and worked as a maid in Malaysia for a year. She told the police officers during interrogation after her arrest in an operation codenamed Op Pintas Bersepadu (Pengemis) that as a leader there were no fixed working hours for her. The group of beggars usually move around the area with other ‘leaders’ that escort the blind beggars around to ‘sell’ tissue packets and beg.
According to a police source, Maria and her fellow leaders would meet Mustaqim and other beggars working for them at a restaurant in Brickfields to plan their work activities often.
The work was allocated based on the intelligence of the beggars. The beggars would work according to shifts starting at 9 am.
The beggar got a break before ending their daily shift at midnight; each shift would involve seven visually impaired beggars and seven “leaders” that kept an eye on the beggars.
At the end of their shift every day, they would regroup according to the plan and meet at the restaurant to count their earnings and split the earnings equally among them.
The restaurant was chosen strategically as it was on the main road that made travelling easy. Taxi drivers also helped transport the blind beggars to the place of their earnings.
Maria’s Private Life
Maria had married to a 56-year-old Mustaqim who was also arrested. He admitted that he joined the begging activities voluntarily as he could easily earn RM2,000 a month without much real work.
Maria confessed of using black magic to lure Mustaqim to marry her. Even though now the couple is divorced, he is still her main source of income, through the begging activities and selling tissues.
Mustaqin is a father of four and lives in Damansara.
During his interrogation, he confessed that every morning he used to go to Brickfields to meet Maria to work. He also told the police that he considered the job of selling tissues as his main source of livelihood.
