Eight Indonesians are to be deported from Vietnam for trial in Malaysia for raiding the tanker Orkim Harmony in June last year.
Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency director-general Ahmad Puzi Ab Kahar said: “the government had agreed to provide an allocation to bring all eight to Malaysia”.
On June 11, the Orkim Harmony reportedly went missing off Tanjung Sedili in Johor last year with 22 crew members on board comprising of 16 Malaysians, five Indonesians and a Myanmar national.
The Malaysian military and the MMEA carried out an exploration over the South China Sea for the missing tanker, which was carrying 6,000 tons of RON95 petrol, valued at RM21 million.
It was spotted in the Gulf of Thailand by a Royal Australian Air Force crew on patrol. The pirates released the ship and fled in its rescue boat towards the Vietnam coast.
Subsequently, the Vietnamese authorities arrested eight Indonesian men suspected of being the pirates near Tho Chu Island.
Ahmad Puzi Ab Kahar said, “Although Malaysia had obtained approval from the Vietnamese court to extradite and try them in this country, several processes must be made before they are tried in the Malaysian court. I expect them to be brought to Malaysia to trial in the near future and I hope the prosecution process will run smoothly and be in Malaysia’s favor. If the case can be brought to Malaysia, it will be the first extradition case and the MMEA hopes it can be implemented as soon as possible”.
Ahmad Puzi said the Attorney-General’s Chambers, Foreign Ministry and MMEA had worked together to deport the eight suspects and it was approved by the Vietnamese court.
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Source: Free Malaysia Today
