18 held in separate Coast Guard anti-smuggling operations off Saint Martin

The Coast Guard has arrested 18 suspected smugglers and seized large consignments of cement and diesel during two separate operations in the waters off Saint Martin’s Island, officials said on Sunday.

Lieutenant Commander Siam-ul-Haq, media officer of the Coast Guard, said the operations were conducted on the basis of intelligence information to prevent cross-border smuggling to Myanmar.

According to him, on Friday night at around 10:00pm, the Coast Guard ship Aparupa Bangla carried out a special operation in the south-western maritime area adjacent to St Martin’s. During the operation, personnel searched a suspicious fishing boat and recovered 600 bags of cement, estimated to be worth about Tk3 lakh, which were being smuggled to Myanmar by evading customs duties. Eleven Bangladeshi nationals were detained in this connection.

In a separate operation early Saturday at around 2:00am, the same Coast Guard vessel intercepted and searched a Myanmar fishing boat in the same maritime zone. The search led to the recovery of 1,500 litres of diesel worth approximately Tk1.8 lakh, also intended for illegal smuggling to Myanmar. Seven Myanmar nationals were arrested during the operation.

The detained individuals were handed over to Teknaf Model Police Station, while legal proceedings regarding the seized goods and the boats used in the smuggling activities are currently underway.

Lieutenant Commander Siam-ul-Haq said the Coast Guard would continue such operations in the future to curb smuggling and illegal trafficking in the country’s maritime areas.