Marines thwart biggest MFO robbery attempt

JOHOR BARU: Johor Baru marine police today thwarted the biggest robbery attempt so far this year on marine fuel oil (MFO).
Johor Baru maritime chief Captain (maritime) Aminuddin Abdul Rashid (pix) said six armed robbers climbed onto the Mt Almi Spirit at about 6.10am.
"Two of them entered the master engine room but luckily the chief engineer noticed them and sounded the alarm," Aminuddin said.
On hearing the alarm, the two robbers and their accomplices, who were on the deck, fled the scene.
"At the time, the ship was located in Indonesian waters near Karimun Island. Our patrol ship KM Rawa was about eight nautical miles from the vessel," he said, adding the Singapore coast guard had also alerted Malaysian maritime authorities on the incident.
The Mt Almi Spirit was then directed by the Aerial Control Centre (ACC) to enter Malaysian waters where two ships escorted it to Tanjung Piai.
The vessel was carrying 90,000 metric tonnes of MFO valued at US$23 million (RM95 million)
"If the robbery had been successful, it would have been the biggest haul so far this year," Aminuddin said.
The Mt Almi Spirit, which is registered in Liberia, has 26 crew members.