Five Malaysian sailors are reportedly missing and police believe they may have been kidnapped.
The Star Online reports that the five went missing from a tugboat off Lahad Datu waters on Monday night.
“We do not rule out the possibility of the five being kidnapped,” Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Abdul Rashid Harun was quoted as saying during a press conference today.
He added that family members of the crew have received no calls, dismissing word that the owner of the tugboat had received a call yesterday about kidnappers demanding 200mil Pesos (RM20mil).
The empty tugboat — Serundung3 — was reportedly found in waters off Dent Haven in Tambisan near Lahad Datu, close to the sea border with the Tawi Tawi chain islands in southern Philippines.
The Star reports that the five have been identified as as Sabahans Abd Rahim Summas, 62, Mohd Zumadil Rahim, 23, Fandy Bakran, 26, Sarawakian Tayudin Anjut, 45, and Mohd Ridzuan Ismail, 32, from the peninsula.
It was reported earlier that a group of fishermen spotted the boat, with its engine still running, at around 3pm and alerted the Eastern Sabah Security Command.
A check by the authorities revealed that items onboard were scattered and crew members were nowhere to be found, sparking speculation that they had been abducted.
