The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) Labuan Maritime Zone detained a tugboat at 2.5 nautical miles northeast of the island on Monday (May 15).
Its director, captain Nudin Jusoh said the MMEA personnel on Op Sejahtera, Op Khas Kuda Laut and Op Tiris were carrying out a routine inspection around 2.10 pm on the tugboat when they found that it did not report the change of skipper in the Certificate of Malaysian Registry (CMR) book and Ship Registry.
During the inspection, the tugboat was manned by a 43-year-old Indonesian and nine crew members of Myanmar and Indian nationals, aged 19 to 37.
According to Nudin, the boat was seized, and the Indonesian skipper as well as the crew members were taken to the Labuan maritime zone jetty for further investigation.
The case is being investigated under the Merchant Shipping Ordinance (MSO) 1952 for suspected failure to report the change of captain in the CMR.
Nudin said MMEA would not compromise with any element of criminal activities and misconduct at sea, and members of the public with any information on suspicious activities can contact the Labuan Maritime Zone Operations Centre at 087-453 777 or MERS 999.
Source: BERNAMA News Agency
