IFC - Information Fusion Centre - MARSEC Weekly Report

- PIRACY/ROBBERY

Events reported last week :

• 6  (2 attempted actions, 4 sea thefts);

• 2 on ships underway in Singapore Strait - others on ships anchored/berthed in Indonesia (Merak Anchorage, Anyer Anchorage, Tanjung Uban Anchorage and Belawan Port);

Total events : 46 incidents since the beginning of the year (compared to 25 at the same date in 2019);

Dangerous areas identified:

• Singapore Strait: 21 incidents in 2017, 20 in 2018, 45 in 2019, 17 in 2020 (only 6 events in Singapore strait at this date in 2019). 

• Sulu Sea: 

  • Last incident occurred on 16/01/2020 with a kidnapping at sea against five fishermen on a fishing vessel. Request of a 580 000 $ of ransom by ASG still in progress;

  • ASG is planning to conduct kidnapping activities in/off Sabah targeting foreigners/seafarers in the month of May. The group should depart from Sulu to Tawi-Tawi and thereafter to Sabah onboard a high-powered boat. latest information received on 23 May indicated that ESSCOM spotted the ASG and chased them back to Tawi-Tawi waters towards Sitankai;

Following anchorage areas: 

• Indonesia: Anyer, Batam, Begawan, Belawan, Dumai, Merak, Panjang, Sandakan, Samarinda, Taboneo and Tanjung Uban;

• Philippines: Manille, Batangas, General Santos Harbour;

• Bangladesh: Chittagong;

• Vietnam: Vung Tau, Ho Chi Minh;

• India: Kakinada, Alang.

- IUU

• 15/05: Three foreign fishermen onboard two Vietnamese fishing vessels were apprehended Off Sattahip, Chonburi Province;

• 20/05 : The Directorate General of Marine and Fisheries Resources Supervision of the Indonesia Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries arrested two illegal fishing vessels in the Indonesian Fisheries Management Area.

- CONTRABAND

• 09/05: The Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency in cooperation with the Royal Malaysian Police have thwarted a drug syndicate attempt near Marina Bay Beach, Port Dickson suspected for transhipment a 113-kilogram of drugs (Meth (80.87 Kg) and Ecstasy (31.8 Kg)) to Indonesia by sea;

• 14/05: A barge smuggling 5000 tons of coal was seized by the chinese Coast Guard, the agency announced on Sunday;

• 14/05: The China Coast Guard boarded a ship with some 5,000 tons of sea sand in the Chongming area;

• 17/05: The Marine Police Force thwarted an attempt to smuggle 90,000 litres of petrol worth RM117,900 (US$27,000) to the Philippines.

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