IPOH:  Another illegal immigrant who escaped from the Immigration Depot in Bidor, Tapah, died in a road accident last night.

Perak Police Chief Datuk Seri Mohd Yusri Hassan Basri said the accident occurred at Kilometre 332.5 of the North-South Expressway heading south at 9.20 pm.

"The victim was hit by a four-wheeled drive vehicle while walking, and the investigation is conducted under Section 41 (1) of the Road Transport Act 1987," he said in a statement.

He said the body of the Myanmar national had been sent to Tapah Hospital for post-mortem.

Officers from the Immigration department went to the hospital and confirmed that the victim was one of those who had escaped from the depot in Bidor, he said.

He urged those who witnessed the incident to come forward to provide statements on the incident by contacting the investigating officer, Insp P. Prathiparaj from the Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Division, Tapah District Police Headquarters (IPD), at 014-6178095.

Meanwhile, he said three of the escaped detainees, all Myanmar nationals, were captured this morning in the Tapah area, bringing the total number of those recaptured to 54 individuals as of 8 am.

Regarding the recapture of the detainees,  Mohd Yusri said that one of them was detained at Felcra Jalan Kachu, Tapah at 9.45 pm based on public information.

Another detainee was captured at about 3.35 am today, while the third man was captured at Batu Dua Jalan Pahang, Tapah, at 3.55 am, he said.

He called for public cooperation to track down the remaining detainees.

-- BERNAMA