The oil tanker was found transporting undeclared diesel worth some RM900,000.
KOTA KINABALU: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) intercepted an oil tanker transporting undeclared diesel worth some RM900,000 off the Sabah capital here Thursday (June 16).
MMEA mounted a special operation to check on the vessel some 0.2 nautical miles off Sepanggar Bay after a tip-off at 2pm Thursday.
Sabah and Labuan MMEA director First Admiral Datuk Mohd Rosli Abdullah said a check onboard the vessel found that it was bringing in some 170,000 litres of diesel that was not declared and had no valid documentation.
“The raiding team became even more suspicious after a further check found that the ship’s navigational and tracking systems seemed to have been deliberately turned off,” he said in a statement here Friday (June 17).
“The oil tanker was operated by four Malaysian crew members aged between 24 and 72 years old.”
Rosli said the MMEA established that the Malaysian-registered vessel was in breach of various other regulations including the crew not operating according to the minimum safe manning requirements.
“The skipper, chief engineer and other crew members were found to have not fulfilled competency conditions (to operate the ship) while the vessel also did not possess sufficient safety equipment.
“The crew was later detained and the vessel escorted to the MMEA jetty in Sepanggar to be handed over to the investigating officer,” he said.
He added that the case will be probed under the Merchant Shipping Ordinance 1952 and the Control of Supplies Act 1961.
Towards this end, Mohd Rosli urged the public to report any misconduct or criminal activities particularly in the maritime areas of Sabah and Labuan to the MMEA by calling 088-387 774 or the Malaysian Emergency Response Services (MERS) 999 number.
