May 16, 2023
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Four Sri Lankan Tamil stowaways have reportedly been handed over to relevant authorities after they’d been caught illegally travelling on a cargo ship dressed as crew members.
The four individuals who smartly sneaked into the MV CMA CGM PANAMA cargo vessel last month at the Colombo Harbour were discovered by the ship’s captain at the Suez Canal security checkpoint based in Egypt, per Colombo Page.
The vessel was loaded with garment exports from Sri Lanka.
These individuals were handed over to the Sri Lankan Police on Monday and remanded by Galle Premaratne Thiranagama’s Acting Magistrate, Newsfirst Lanka, first reported on Tuesday.
The four men silently boarded a Liberian-flagged ship when it was present at the Colombo Harbour on 24 March. The vessel departed from the port of Colombo on 25 March and started the journey to Europe.
When the vessel was sailing in the Suez Canal in Egypt, it was first observed that it had four stowaways that weren’t known to the ship’s captain or any other staff.
The Sri Lankans were dressed like the ship’s crew when discovered. The captain informed his parent firm regarding the incident. On 28 March, these stowaways were successfully handed over to the MV Jackson Bay vessel belonging to the same firm sailing toward Sri Lanka.
They detained these four Sri Lankans in a special cell and brought them to the international waters close to the Galle port under stringent security.
Following these discoveries, the men were handed over to another vessel that passed by and was heading to China to be handed over to relevant Sri Lankan authorities. The four were handed over to relevant Sri Lankan authorities in the waters of Galle Harbour.
According to the report, the men were identified as residents of Chunnakkam, Kytes, Weliwtithurai, and Mullaithivu.
The Department of Immigration and Emigration mentioned that a special examination was also launched to determine how the men managed to enter the Colombo Port and the vessel.
Actions are going to be taken against them and also against those people who aided as well as abetted them, the authorities mentioned.
Reference: Colombo Page, Daily News
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