‘Mocha Girls’ arrested in Malaysia for work-permit violations

“Mocha Girls” (Facebook photo)

MANILA – Filipina pop group “Mocha Girls” were arrested and detained in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for performing in the country without the necessary work permit. They were eventually released without facing criminal charges.

According to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Mocha Girls were arrested by the Malaysian immigration authorities on September 4 and were released on September 10, serving a 6-day detention.

The pop group worked under a ‘social visit pass,’ which did not permit them to perform professionally. Two Philippine embassy officials then assisted them and were able to secure their early release before the prescribed 14-day detention for work-permit violators.

The Mocha Girls returned to Manila on September 11. They immediately released a statement in their Facebook page.

“As our producer failed to produce the work permit that his contractual commitment with us mandated him [to do], we were taken into custody and detained in the Malaysian Immigration,” the statement read.

“Mocha Girls [are] legitimate artists and professional performers in the Philippines… We were not detained for sexy performances as some would speculate,” the statement continued.

The pop group’s manager planned to take ‘appropriate legal action’ against the producer.