ALOR GAJAH, Oct 10 (Bernama) -- An attempt by three men, believed to be Indonesians, to smuggle illegal immigrants and drugs out of Malaysian waters was foiled when their fibreglass boat capsized off the coast of Tanjung Bidara early today.
Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) Melaka and Negeri Sembilan director Captain Salehuddin Zakaria said in a statement that they were aware of the presence of the suspects’ boat through intelligence gathering, adding that the boat had travelled from Pulau Rapat, Indonesia.
He added that the MMEA personnel implementing Op Murni detected the suspects’ boat at 4 am, about 2.3 nautical miles southwest of Tanjung Bidara.
He said the suspects acted aggressively when instructed to stop for inspection, before colliding with the MMEA vessel.
He added that two of the suspects dived into the sea to escape, while another suspect, 37, was detained when he lost control of the boat, which then capsized.
"Preliminary investigations found that the boat is believed to be heading towards Pengkalan Balak to pick up undocumented migrants and drugs to be smuggled out of Malaysia.
The suspect was taken to the Melaka and Negeri Sembilan MMEA Jetty for further interrogation under the Immigration Act 1959/63,” he said, adding that a search and rescue operation has been activated to track down the other two suspects.
-- BERNAMA
