8 Bangladeshis among 16 arrested by Indonesian navy on illegal entry charges
They were allegedly entering Indonesia from Malaysia by speedboat
Indonesian authorities have arrested 16 people, including eight Bangladeshis, on charges of illegally entering the country, according to Indonesian media outlet The Jakarta Post.
They were arrested on Monday (31 August) in Dumai, a city in Indonesia's Riau province, while allegedly attempting to enter the country from Malaysia aboard a twin-engine speedboat.
The eight other detainees were Indonesian nationals.
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The group was detained after arriving at Purnama Beach, according to the report.
Quoting naval officer Agung N Kusumaji, The Jakarta Post reported that authorities received intelligence about the attempted illegal entry on Sunday evening.
"After receiving the information, naval personnel were instructed to conduct surveillance across the waters and coastline of Purnama," he said.
Col Kusumaji, head of the Dumai Naval Base, said the operation was led by Wahyu Wididi Widayat, head of the naval base's intelligence unit, and involved three teams.
The naval base's Quick Response Team, the regional naval command's maritime intelligence unit and the Fleet Command's (Koarmada) "IER" Intelmar Operations Task Force also took part in the operation.
