Cops suspect tugboat crew kidnapped
Published on: Wednesday, July 20, 2016
Lahad Datu: State Police Commissioner Datuk Abdul Rashid Harun said the five missing crew of the tugboat, Serudong 3, may have been kidnapped. He told a press conference that investigations are still underway and until now, police as well as the owner of the tugboat have not received any call from the men or any other party. He said the tugboat, pulling a barge, Serudong 4, took off from Sandakan towards Semporna on July 17 with the five men onboard. They were scheduled to reach Semporna at 5pm on Monday.ADVERTISEMENT The missing five have been identified as Abd Rahim Summas, 62, Tayudin Anjut, 45, Fandy Bakran, 26, Mohd Jumadil Rahim, 23, all from Tawau and Mohd Ridzuan Ismail, 32, from Jengka, Pahang."At about 2pm on Monday, a tugboat Sabah Tug 8, which was on the way to Tawau from Jeroco Kretam, Kinabatangan stumbled upon Serudong 3 and Serudong 4 in waters off Dent Heaven with the engine still running."The captain of the tugboat contacted the owner of Serudong 3 through phone to inform him of the finding before continuing on their journey. The owner then informed the authority," he said.According to Abdul Rashid, shortly after receiving the information, two marine police speedboats were dispatched to the scene.ADVERTISEMENT When found, the Serudong 3's engine was still running, but its five crew could not be found and the boat's navigating compass was also missing."Until now, the five men cannot be contacted and we do not rule out the possibility that they have been kidnapped.
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However, investigation will continue and we have not ascertained the exact time and location of the incident, if it happened," he said.He added other than the compass, no other asset was reported missing and there was no sign of struggle on the tugboat.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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Abdul Rashid said police already met with the Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) to discuss the next course of action. He advised all vessel owners and fishermen to give full cooperation to the authority and inform Esscom of their movements so that immediate action can be taken if something happened.