GEORGE TOWN (Penang) — The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) has detained a Singapore-registered oil tanker about 26 nautical miles west Muka Head near Penang on Sunday (Jan 5) for anchoring in Malaysian waters without permission.

State MMEA director Hamizan Harun said the Ocean Gull vessel, measuring 116.65m in length, was detained at noon on Sunday.

He said there were 20 crew members on board apart from the master, consisting Bangladeshis (four), Chinese nationals (eight), Myanmar nationals (seven) and an Indonesian, aged between 23 and 55.

“We immediately mobilised our patrol boat as soon as we received a tip-off on its location.

“Our checks on the vessel showed it had flouted Section 491B1(I) of the Shipping Merchants Ordinance 1952 for anchoring without notifying the Marine Department.”

If found guilty, the vessel faces an RM100,000 (S$32,900) fine or a jail term of two years or both, upon conviction.

Mr Hamizan said MMEA would continue to enhance checks in Penang waters and would not compromise with those who flout the law.

“We urged the public to cooperate with us by reporting any such incident in future.”

In response to TODAY’s queries on Monday, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said that it was notified by An Guang Shipping, the owner of the Singapore-registered petroleum/chemical tanker Ocean Gull, that its vessel was detained by MMEA on Jan 5, 2020.

“MPA is in contact with the owner and rendering support,” said the authority. NEW STRAITS TIMES