SEMPORNA: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) foiled an attempt to smuggle one tonne of cooking oil in packets to a neighbouring country through the waters of Pulau Kulapuan, here.
The cooking oil was discovered in an unregistered pump boat that was moving in a suspicious manner about 0.7 nautical miles northeast of the island at 2.45pm on Wednesday, according to Semporna Maritime Zone Director Maritime Commander Norrimi Hassan.
“A MMEA team on ‘Op Pluto Timur’ patrol duty detected the movement of the pump boat and approached it, but the boat skipper steered the boat to a shallow part before fleeing by jumping into the sea,” he said.
He assessed the seizure, which included the boat and engine, to be worth RM8,000.
To combat smuggling activities and the entry of illegal immigrants into the State by sea, Norrimi said MMEA will continue to boost patrols and enforcement near hot spots, particularly at the boundary of national seas.
In this context, he urged members of the public to contact the Semporna Maritime Zone Operations Centre at 089-782619 or MERS 999 if they have information about maritime crime.
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