Mystery over men rescued from boat in Rakhine State

YANGON — Police in southern Rakhine State say they still have no idea where 10 men found drifting on a boat on Wednesday are from or who they are.

Residents reported seeing the vessel floating near Zeegone village, about 20 kilometres from the town of Gwa. Ten men were later rescued from the boat, which had suffered an engine failure, and one body was also recovered. The cause of death is not yet clear.

“One of them died on the boat maybe two day ago.” said a police officer from Gwa Township Police Station, who asked not to be identified.

The crew members do not speak English or Myanmar, the officer said. They are being held at the police station in Gwa until the mystery is solved.  

“I asked them, ‘What is your name?’ in English but they didn’t understand,” he said, adding that police are looking for translators to communicate with the men.

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Police found fishing nets on the vessel, suggesting that the vessel may be a fishing boat. 

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