Navy arrests 67 suspects ‘heading to Australia’

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s navy said it had arrested 67 people who it believes were trying to travel by sea to Australia illegally, according to The Associated Press.

The navy said in a statement that 12 men were arrested first near the port town of Trincomalee, 260 km northeast of Colombo and, upon questioning them, intercepted 55 more people traveling in a fishing vessel.

It said the people were aged between 3 and 53, and that five of them are suspected be part of a human smuggling ring.

Navy spokesperson Indika de Silva said while their destination is still not clear it is suspected that they were headed to Australia.

Police were still determining the motivation for the illegal voyage, de Silva said, but Sri Lankans over the years have traveled to Australia and other developed nations illegally for economic and political reasons.

Australian media reported Tuesday that officials sent 15 people back to Sri Lanka on Saturday after they were found traveling in a boat near Christmas Island.