JOHOR BARU (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) has seized a Mongolian-registered vessel for sailing unlawfully in the Johor waters.

Tanjung Sedili zone MMEA director maritime captain Mohd Zulfadli Nayan said the vessel was seized at about 2.30pm Saturday (July 25) about 9.4 nautical miles east of Tanjung Balau.

"The utility vessel was spotted in Johor waters by a MMEA patrol boat. The vessel was registered in Mongolia and was being operated by four Indonesian men between the ages of 31 to 41," he said in a statement released on Sunday.

The skipper of vessel said that they were transporting spare parts from Singapore to a tanker ship managed by a company based in Greece, Zulfadli said.

"However, no manifest or proof of permission from the port authority to sail was found when checked," he said, adding that the ship's crew and its skipper have been brought to the MMEA Tanjung Sedili zone headquarters for further investigation.

He added that the case is being the case is being investigated under Section 44 of the Customs Act for hovering, Section 474(2) of the Merchant Shipping Ordinance 1952 for the use of a foreign vessel without a license in Malaysian waters.