The crew of one of the eight vessels – a pump boat – was detained off the Pulau Pandanan in Sabah, Malaysia’s The Star Online reported.
Eastern Sabah Security Command Maritime Enforcement director First Admiral M Karunanithi said the first vessel was intercepted at 5:30 a.m. Tuesday, spotted by the Maritime Enforcement Agency vessel “KM Banggi” near Pulau Mataking.
But the crew of the vessel, appearing to realize they had been seen, sped toward the Philippine waters through the Alice Reef, The Star Online report said.
After about 30 minutes, the KM Banggi crew saw seven more unidentified craft, each moving at about 30 knots. The crews of the seven vessels also headed toward Philippine waters when they realized they were sighted.
Despite this, the KM Banggi crew caught and detained one of the pump boats with two people on board.
Found aboard the vessel were 25 jerry cans believed used to smuggle fuel from Sabah to southern Philippines. — Joel Locsin /LBG, GMA News
