The figures were disclosed by the Director-General of Malaysia’s Immigration Department, Datuk Zakaria Shaaban, in an interview with Malaysian newspaper, Utusan Malaysia, published on Friday.
Nigerians accounted for the highest number of arrests, followed by Uganda with 13, Kenya with 10 and Ghana with eight.
Other nationals arrested included six each from Somalia and Tanzania, four from Senegal, three from Algeria, two each from Burkina Faso, Togo and The Gambia, while Guinea, Zimbabwe and Libya recorded one arrest each.
Shaaban said the most common offence was entering or remaining in Malaysia without a valid pass or permit, under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.
He said 85 people were arrested for the offence, including 47 Nigerians.
Another 23 people were detained for overstaying their permitted period, while three were arrested for violating the conditions attached to their immigration passes.
One Nigerian was also arrested for allegedly possessing forged documents under Section 56(1)(l) of the Immigration Act.
The immigration chief further disclosed that an Algerian employer was arrested for allegedly employing foreign workers without valid passes.
He said the department would continue enforcement operations against undocumented migrants and take action against employers and other parties found to be employing or accommodating foreigners without proper immigration documents.
