KOTA KINABALU: A suspected smuggler was detained while two others managed to escape as marine police foiled an attempt to sneak controlled goods out of the country in Sabah’s northern Kudat district.
Marine police personnel were patrolling off Tanjung Meniagit Banggi during Ops Gelora when they spotted three men in a boat behaving suspiciously on Monday (June 17).
Sabah Region Four Marine Police commander Asst Comm Ahmad Ariffin said his men approached the boat when two of its occupants suddenly jumped into the sea and swam away.
“The operation team managed to detain the sole suspect left behind, a 26-year-old man who did not possess any identification documents,” he said when contacted on Tuesday (June 18).
An inspection of the seized boat found 30 empty oil drums which police believe were intended to be used in smuggling subsidised items to Mangsee Island in the Philippines.
The suspect is being investigated under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 for illegal entry into the country, he added.
