MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The MT Joaquim carrying 3,500 metric tons of marine fuel oil was found near the island of Pulau Rupat some 170 miles west of Singapore, according to The Malaysian Insider.
The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) deputy director general said two of the tanker’s 10 crew members, including the captain, had sustained minor injuries but were otherwise safe.
"Looking at how things developed, we suspect that more than 10 people were involved in the case," Maritime Adm. Datuk Ahmad Puzi Abdul Kahar was quoted as saying.
MMEA’s Puzi speculated that hijackings of this kind carry the possibility of being an inside job. He elaborated that the smugglers usually know the methods, manpower and resources needed to unload the consignment.
"They would even have ready buyers for such shipment," Ahmad Puzi stressed.
A similar hijacking occurred in June, when the Malaysian MT Orkim Harmony with 6,000 metric tons of petrol was later recovered in Cambodian waters. A group of Indonesian pirates later confessed to the hijacking.
