Police record 199 criminal cases involving Rohingya

KUALA LUMPUR: Police recorded 199 criminal cases involving Rohingya refugees in the country between 2022 and August 2026.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said Selangor recorded the highest number of cases at 58, followed by Kedah with 26 and Kuala Lumpur with 22.

"2022 recorded the highest number of cases at 52, followed by 43 in 2023, 37 in 2024, 29 in 2025 and 38 up to August 2026," he said in a written reply published on the Parliament portal today.

He was responding to Datuk Adnan Abu Hassan (BN-Kuala Pilah), who asked for the number of criminal offences involving Rohingya refugees by state, as well as the government's measures to strengthen control, registration and monitoring of the community to ensure public safety and order.

Saifuddin said National Security Council (NSC) Directive No. 23, on the Policy and Mechanism for the Management of Refugees and Asylum Seekers, was established to manage all groups of refugees and asylum seekers in Malaysia comprehensively, rather than focusing solely on the Rohingya community.

He said the directive outlined guidelines and the functions and roles of various ministries and enforcement agencies to safeguard national security.

"Under the framework of NSC Directive No. 23, the government is strengthening control and monitoring of all refugee communities, including the Rohingya, through the Refugee Registration Document (DPP) programme," he said.

He added that the DPP programme served as the government's main instrument to take over and strengthen the centralised management of refugee data, reducing its full dependence on the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

"Migrants whose status has been verified will be issued a special pass in the form of a card known as the DPP card.

"The card serves as an official identity document for this group and is the only document recognised by the government that allows its holders to reside temporarily in Peninsular Malaysia until a final arrangement is made for them," he said.