Authority Arrests Six Sea Pirates in Batam

Tanjungpinang (Antara Bali) - The Western Fleet Quick Response (WFQR) Team of Lantamal IV/Tanjungpinang naval base on Monday arrested six suspected sea pirates in Tanjung Pinggir, Sekupang, Batam District, Riau Islands Province.

Commander of Lantamal IV/Tanjungpinang First Admiral S. Irawan stated here on Monday that the pirate group was arrested after being suspected of crimes committed on the Malacca Strait, especially during the year-end holidays.

"Three out of six suspects are old players, known as UA, TA, and L," Irawan remarked.

UA had served 4.5 years in prison for piracy for attacking the MT Zafirah ship in 2012, while Ta was once arrested for attempted robbery of the MT Lautan Promise ship in 2013.

L was arrested in 2015 by the WFQR team after being suspected of playing a criminal role in Malaysias East OPL waters.

The group was suspected of committing piracy against ships passing through Malacca Strait. The suspects had departed on a speed boat from Cantik River in Batam, heading towards Buluh Island and Sambu Kecil Island, with Malaysias East OPL waters as their final destination.

The other three new recruits were identified as MA, working as the helmsman; FSL, the quartermaster; and R, a climber.

The local authority had mapped out areas or routes prone to piracy and deployed the WFQR team to these areas to prevent crime in the local waters of Riau Islands, Irawan stated.

Security measures in local waters have been intensified, especially on Christmas and New Years Eve, Irawan added. (WDY)