Boat capsize: Body of GOF personnel found

SANDAKAN, Feb 14 -- The General Operations Force (GOF) personnel from the 15th Battalion here, who was reported missing after the boat he was in capsized in the waters off Sandakan yesterday morning, was found dead at 6.20 pm today.

Sandakan Zone Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) director Capt Zainudin Mohd Zuki said the body of Corporal Asman Ongkal, 40, was found near the Sandakan beach, about 1km from the spot the boat was reported to have capsized.

“The victim was identified by his family members and had been handed over to the police for further action,” he told reporters here tonight.

In the 6 am incident yesterday, a passenger boat carrying 37 people including the victim and his family, collided with a trawler boat, causing it to capsize.

Asman went missing while trying to rescue other passengers from the boat.

-- BERNAMA