Rusty people-smuggling ship carrying 127 Sri Lankans busted on route to Australia, New Zealand
Authorities arrested 16 people involved in an ‘international network’ of traffickers, which had been operating since the middle of last year
Malaysia has arrested more than a dozen members of an alleged people smuggling syndicate after intercepting a ship carrying 127 Sri Lankan migrants believed to be bound for Australia and New Zealand, authorities said.
Maritime authorities on Tuesday halted a modified tanker named “Etra” in Malaysian territorial waters off southern Johor state, national police chief Mohamad Fuzi Harun said.
Nearly 100 Sri Lankan men, 24 women and nine children were aboard the ship, which was making its way to international waters when it was stopped.
The police chief said in a statement on Saturday that authorities arrested 16 people involved in an “international network” of people smugglers, including three Indonesians and four Malaysians aboard a fishing vessel used to transport the migrants from the Johor coast to the tanker.
Another four Malaysians were arrested in the nearby state capital of Johor Baharu, while a fifth was taken into custody in northern Penang state.
