A Bangladeshi job seeker was found naked, beaten up and tied to a chair in Shah Alam area in Malaysia, reports Malaysian daily,The Star.

He was not identified immediately. 

Malaysian police managed to rescue him, smashing a kidnapping syndicate that preys on migrant workers and demands money from their families back home.

Officers raided a shop in Taman Medan to rescue the man and arrested 16 Bangladeshis, Indians, Sri Lankans and Malaysians in Kajang and Petaling Jaya.

"Two of those arrested were Malaysian women," said Selangor criminal investigation department chief Senior Asst Comm Mohd Adnan Abdullah.

One of the women had a pair of handcuffs and a toy pistol, which police believed was used in the kidnapping.

"We were told the 32-year-old Bangladeshi welder was kidnapped in front of his home in Taman Cahaya, Pandan Indah, on May 7 at about 9.30pm.

"A day later, his cousin lodged a police report that his family in Bangladesh had received a call demanding RM140,000 or 30 million taka (RM1.35mil) for his release," he said.

Investigations suggested  that the man was approached by a woman posing as a police officer before he was dragged by three men into a Perodua Myvi.

"We believe this group was involved in other kidnappings of foreigners, especially Bangladeshis," said SAC Mohd Adnan adding "We are digging up old cases to see if they were involved."

Officials at Bangladesh high commission in Kuala Lumpur couldn't confirm it immediately.