JPJ enforcement officers checking on overloaded lorries along Kuching-Serian Road.
State JPJ chief enforcement officer Albert Clement said the three lorries with dangerous loads were fined RM300 under the Road Transport Act 1987.
The overloading vehicles would be slapped with the Commercial Vehicle Licencing Board Act 1987, where offenders are liable to be fined with a minimum of RM1,000 and maximum of RM10,000.
“Last night (Thursday), there were two cases of overloaded lorries that carried loads above 63 per cent of permissible goods and another one with 43 per cent of permissible goods.
“All three cases will be referred to the court, with a minimum fine of RM1,000,” Albert told The Borneo Post yesterday.
He said since ‘Ops Bersepadu’ was launched several weeks ago, JPJ and other enforcement agencies had been working round the clock to fight illegal loggers in the jungles and on the roads.
Albert added that JPJ’s enforcement officers had been taking shifts daily to combat overloaded lorries, commonly known as lori hantu, from major trunk roads.
“We are working closely with the police and the forest department against illegal logging. On our part, we are checking on overloaded lorries. The police will provide security and the forestry department enforcement officers will verify the logs that are being transported.”
He said JPJ would continue to monitor all the major trunk roads in the state, especially along the Pan-Borneo trunk road, covering Miri, Bintulu, Sibu, Betong, Sri Aman, Kuching and Kota Samarahan.
Through the concerted efforts of the JPJ, police, and the forestry department, illegal logs worth about RM15.5 million had been confiscated, as announced by state’s deputy police chief Dato Dr Chai Khin Chung last Tuesday.