Another boat carrying Indonesians sinks in Malaysia waters

PORT KLANG (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Another boat, carrying 27 Indonesians, sank in Sepang waters early on Thursday.

This comes barely 24 hours after a boat with 97 Indonesians sank in Kuala Langat waters on Wednesday.

Klang Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) director (operations) Left Commander Mohd Hambali Yaakub said 18 people have been rescued so far, while nine were still missing,

"Initial investigations revealed that the boat sank at about 3am bound for Tanjung Balai.

"We believe the boat had came from Pantai Morib," he told a press conference.

On Wednesday, a boat carrying 97 Indonesian illegal migrants sank off western Malaysia. Sixty-two people have been rescued while 26 are still missing, said reports. Nine bodies have been found so far.

Agence France-Presse quoted Malaysian authorities as saying that the boat was likely carrying three times more passengers than it could safely transport.

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