Indonesian Navy Cathes Mongolian Ship Carrying Illegal Crude Oil

Muntok, Bangka-Belitung (Antara) - The Indonesian Navy has caught a Mongolian-flagged tanker ship, "TMT Zonda 362", which was carrying 400 tons of illegal crude oil in the Bangka Strait. According to Bangka-Belitung Navy Base's Commander, Colonel Iwa Kartika, as quoted by Navy's Base Spokesman Major MB Panjaitan, the Mongolian-flagged ship was caught during a routine sea patrol in the waters of the Bangka Strait on Saturday (Feb. 22), at 2 p.m. local time. Major Panjaitan added that six crew members of the ship were also arrested and have been detained at the Bangka-Belitung's Navy Base. The MT Zonda ship was caught when it was anchored in the middle of Bangka Strait, and the ship's crew failed to present the legal shipping documents. Investigations on the case are still ongoing, and Panjaitan was not in a position to reveal further information about the origin of the crude oil. "We are intensively investigating the six crew members, who are all Indonesian citizens," Panjaitan claimed. (*)