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Sagat
Guest
Wednesday January 5, 2011
RM300,000 ciggies seized in boat chase
KOTA KINABALU: A high-speed chase on rough seas off northern Kudat district ended with police seizing contraband cigarettes worth more than RM300,000.
Kudat marine operations chief Supt Mohd Aris Jambul said following a tip-off, a patrol vessel spotted a speedboat off Pulau Balambangan, some 180km from the city on Monday.
He said the fast craft appeared to have originated from Philippine waters and was heading towards the west coast of Sabah.
“Our vessel gave chase amid rough seas with waves as high as 4m,” Mohd Aris said, adding that the pursuit lasted about 45 minutes before the speedboat was intercepted 8km off Pulau Balambangan.
He said they found 400 cartons of cigarettes of various brands on the boat. Three men aged between 22 and 52 were detained.
