Coast Guard catches suspicious boat off Andaman, human trafficking suspected

A suspicious Myanmarese boat was apprehended by the Indian Coast Guard off Andaman and Nicobar islands on Monday evening, officials said adding that it was suspected to be involved in human trafficking.

The boat, said officials, had no documents, and a lot of clothes were found on board.

The 11 crew members on board were all from Myanmar.

The boat was sighted by ICG ships Rajkamal and Bhikaji Cama and when they tried to contact the boat, it did not respond and tried to escape.

There was no flag, name or registration number on the boat, and the crew was also seen throwing some items into the sea, an official statement said.

When the boat was finally apprehended, the crew was found to have no documents or passports.

There was however a large quantity of fuel and water on board and the crew refused to tell why the vessel was in Indian waters.

"The vessel is 81 feet long an is suspected to be involved in human trafficking as large number of used clothes of men and women were found on board," an official statement said.

The boat has been taken to Port Blair where further investigation will be carried out.

--IANS

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