KOTA KINABALU: Three men aged 19 to 33 years old were arrested by authorities here after they were found with 2,000 litre of petrol without permit on board a cargo boat in Kudat waters on Wednesday (Sept 13) night.
The total value of the vessel and subsidised goods seized were estimated at around RM232,000, said Kudat zone Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) director Commander Maurice Grenville Abeyeratne.
In a statement Thursday (Sept 14), he said the patrol team acted upon intelligence and traced the cargo boat at 2.7 nautical miles north-east of Kudat Marina at around 8.30pm Wednesday.
“Upon inspection, the skipper was found to be a local while the two crewmen were Filipinos, with one of them not having valid identification.
“Further checks found the 2,000 litres of petrol in the boat’s reserve tank without a legal permit from the authorities.
“All suspects and the seized items were brought to the maritime jetty and handed over to the Kudat MMEA investigating officer.
“The case is being investigated under the Control of Supplies Act 1961 for carrying subsidised articles with the intent of carrying out an offence, as well as under the Immigration Act 1959/1963 for the crewman who failed to show a valid identity document,” he added.
