Maritime agency finds 100 active cannon balls in cargo ship from China

The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) has found about 100 World War II cannon balls believed to be still active on a cargo ship from China, which was detained on Sunday.

Johor Maritime director Nurul Hizam Zakaria said the discovery was a result of collaboration between the agency and the police, the Marine Department of Malaysia as well as the Department of National Heritage.

He said the operation which started at 8am and ended at 4pm yesterday involved two MMEA assets together with 15 personnel, 12 police personnel from the Johor police contingent headquarters bomb disposal unit, seven staff from the Department of National Heritage and one from the Marine Department of Malaysia.

"We do not rule out the possibility that this ship registered in Fuzhou, China, was involved in the theft of old British warship wrecks in Pahang waters... all of the ammunition of various sizes that was found was secured by the bomb disposal unit to be destroyed," he said in a statement.

Nurul Hizam also said that further reports related to the discovery would be issued by the police.

Bernama reported that a cargo ship had anchored without authorisation and was believed to be carrying cannon shells at 20.1 nautical miles east of Tanjung Siang, Kota Tinggi, on Sunday.

Media outlets also recently reported that a foreign salvage ship was conducting an illegal operation to salvage steel from a British warship that sank in Kuantan waters.