NKorean ship's China voyages under scanner

Port Blair, Aug 9: Investigation by Integrated Command of Andaman and Nicobar Island"s officials have revealed that the detained suspicious North Korean Ship MV Mu San made several voyages to China without maintaining proper records.

North Korea, now facing sanctions for allegedly building nuclear arms, has been a beneficiary of Chinese material and research.

The Indian Coast Guard detained the MV Mu San with its 39 crew members on board late on Friday, Aug 7 in the Indian Ocean after it dropped the anchor at Hut Bay, without the permission of the Indian authorities.

Indian intelligence agencies also investigating the reason why the ship berthed in Singapore on Jun 30, though it was not a port of call in the logbook.

MV Mu San, which left Laem Chabang port in Thailand on July 27, reached Singapore on Jul 30 and left for Hut Bay on Jul 31. But the passports of the crew were not stamped in Singapore, sources said.

Deputy Inspector General of the Coast Guard, Andaman and Nicobar Kripa Nautiyal said, "Initially, they said the vessel had developed a mechanical snag. This turned out to be false. Later, they said their destination to Iraq was changed midway and asked to drop anchor somewhere till the new destination was decided. But they had no convincing answers to why they took a diversion towards Hut Bay. We cannot buy these versions."

ANI