Police quizzed 34 people after seizing parts and equipment believed meant for making weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear warheads, from two containers on March 8.
The parts were from China and bound for Iran, said Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar.
He said the ship and crew were allowed to resume their journey after the containers were seized by police at Northport. Asked to elaborate on the equipment, he said: “We are not really sure what it is for but we are trying to find out.
“It appears to be a sort of a mixer or boiler but we should not jump to any conclusion. We are liaising with Interpol and checking with all relevant parties,” he told a press conference at the Marine Police Operations Centre.
It is learnt that the freight forwarder who shipped the equipment had declared it as two units of “agitating mixer machine” and the other as a “stainless steel storage tank”.
Ismail said the contraband was picked up by the Bunga Raya I from China and the shipment was bound for Iran.
Global Security Newswire reminds us:
In 2004, a Sri Lankan national residing in Malaysia was imprisoned for exporting nuclear warhead parts to Libya and suspected of affiliation with Pakistani atomic scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan's proliferation ring.