RI navy nabs Hong Kong-flagged vessel in west Papua waters

Wamena, Papua, March 6 (ANTARA) - An Indonesian naval patrol boat intercepted and detained a Hong Kong-flagged vessel, the MV Jin Feng, which was believed to be trying to take a quantity of newly-mined nickel out of West Papua waters on Wednesday.

The chief of the Eastern Maritime Security Task Force Command (Koarmatim), Commodore Sugeng Supriyanto, confirmed the detention of the foreign vessel, saying it was trying to leave West Papua waters with tons of nickel in its hold. "But I have yet to receive more detailed information on the action," he added.

He said Koarmatim had been stepping up its patrols in West Papua waters for the past few weeks and one of its patrol boats on Wednesday encountered the MV Jin Fweng which also proved to lack the required documents to enter Indonesian waters.

A few hours later on the same day, another Koamartim patrol boat apprehended a foreign tugboat and barge that had entered West Papua waters illegally, he said.