KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 9 — Police apprehended a total of 229 men and 34 women during the Op Noda operation at a disused and abandoned hotel in Jalan Pasar Baharu, Pudu, here last night.

Kuala Lumpur police chief Datuk Allaudeen Abdul Majid said the detainees were in their 20s to 40s and comprised Chinese, Nepalese, Pakistani, Indian, Vietnamese, Thai, and Indonesian nationals as well as locals.

In a press conference after the operation, he said 20 of the 34 women arrested were prostitutes while the rest were immigrants renting rooms at the hotel.

"The building in question is predominantly rented by immigrants and serves as a base for prostitution activities.

"The prostitutes solicit customers in the hotel lobby before taking them upstairs and charging between RM50 to RM100,” he said.

Allaudeen said police also detained 14 immigrant children, who will be taken to the Kuala Lumpur Contingent Police Headquarters for the documentation process.

"If they have documents, they will be released,” he said, adding that the detainees will also undergo drug screening.

The case will be investigated under Sections 186 and 372B of the Penal Code, Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63, and Section 15(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, he added.

On a separate note, Allaudeen said Op Selamat 21 has identified 50 accident-prone locations around the capital.

"Therefore, I ask road users to be careful and drive safely to their hometowns,” he said. — Bernama