KUALA LUMPUR: A 28-year-old Pakistani has been missing since August and his family is appealing for any information on his whereabouts. Waqas Ahmed Malik, 28, a waiter, was last seen on Aug 20 at his workplace in Semenyih, meeting up with two women.

His uncle Nisar Ahmed, 43, who flew in from Gujarat, India, told reporters at the MCA Public Services and Complaints Department here that Waqas' colleague saw him meeting up with the women, who were in a car, outside the restaurant at about 8pm.

"The colleague said Waqas told him that he was just going to say goodbye to the women and that he would be back shortly,'' said Nisar. "But he got into the car and was never seen again."

The colleague tried calling Waqas on his phone to no avail.

"The last time he called the family in Pakistan was on Aug 10, a week before he went missing. He told the family that he had no money as the employer had yet to pay him four months' wages," Nisar said, adding that the other workers had now received their wages.

Department head Datuk Michael Chong said anyone with information on Waqas' whereabouts can contact the department at 03-2161-8044.

Chong also said 74 people were reported missing last year, the majority of whom were women.

Five cases involved young runaway foreign brides, three of them Vietnamese, he said, adding that his department had been inundated with requests for letters of good conduct from those wanting to get married.

"The women ran away because they could not put up with their husbands who are usually much older than them," he explained. "Age gap is an important factor. Do not take a wife who is so young that she can be your granddaughter."