Boats nabbed for illegal logging

BATAM, Riau Islands: Riau Islands police recently apprehended two boats carrying 756 cubic meters of timber that were about to be dispatched to neighboring Singapore, a senior police officer said on Tuesday.

The boats were nabbed while sailing in the Durian Strait here, said chief of Riau Islands provincial police Sr. Comr. Anton Bachrul Alam. Ten crew and two boat captains were being questioned as they failed to show police proper documents at the time of the arrests, said Anton. If found guilty, they could face a maximum sentence of five years in prison, said Anton. -- JP