Missing Singapore-registered vessel found after reported hijack: MPA

A tanker hijacked on Sunday has been found approximately 13 nautical miles off Tanjung Keling, Malaysia.

PUTRAJAYA – ‎Oil tanker MT Joaquim, which was reported missing since Saturday night, was found in Indonesian waters near Pulau Rupat with its cargo missing.

While its 10-crew members are safe, the cargo worth RM2.8 million is believed to have been seized by the pirates.

Puzi said there was a possibility that an “insider” was involved in the hijacking as the oil tanker was supposedly heading north but had changed course to a southern direction.

“The ship needs to be fixed”, said Datuk Ahmad Puzi Ab Kahar, deputy-director general of operations for the MMEA.

Separate reports say that the ship was finally spotted by a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) airccraft, with all nine crew members accounted for.

The vessel was on its way to Langkawi, Malaysia, from Tanjung Pinang, Indonesia, when it went off the radar on Saturday evening.

He added that the MMEA was in the midst of determining the background of the pirates as they managed to escape as soon as the cargo was transferred from the ship. He said two of the crew numbers suffered injuries during the attack and were being treated at a nearby hospital.

Yesterday, the MT Joaquim with 10 crew members was found 14 nautical miles east off Pulau Rapat, Indonesia, after it was released by pirates at 8.55am.

Ahamd Puzi shows a picture of MT Joaquim oil tanker during the press conference.

“The Indonesian authorities have informed us over the vessel’s seizure and detention of the suspected pirates”, he told Bernama here.

He added that this was the first robbery reported since last year in the Malaysian waters of the Malacca Strait, Astro Awani reported.