The vessel that was spotted with 16 illegal immigrants in the waters off Labuan island.
LABUAN: Sixteen illegal immigrants were detained by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) for illegal fishing in the waters off Labuan Island on Friday.
Labuan MMEA director, Captain Nudin Jusoh said the vessel was spotted at 24 nautical miles off Labuan around 11 am on May 14.
“There were 18 crew members on board the vessel, including the skipper, aged 24 to 54.
“Upon inspection, 16 of the fishermen did not have any documentation on them which revealed them to be illegal immigrants.
“The vessel and all the crewmen were escorted to the Labuan MMEA headquarters for further investigation,” said Nudin.
The case will be referred to the Fisheries Department while the illegal immigrants will be handed to the Immigration Department for further action.
The case will be investigated under the Immigration Act 1959/63.