JOHOR BAHRU: The bodies of two men and four women believed to be illegal immigrants from Indonesia were found washed up ashore at Pantai Teluk C in Bandar Penawar near Kota Tinggi yesterday.
Passers-by found the bodies at 9.40am and alerted police.
Kota Tinggi police chief Hussin Zamora said it was believed the victims, aged between 31 and 46, tried to enter Malaysia illegally by sea.
“The victims were believed to have been caught by strong currents while getting off their boat before drowning.
“Police and armed forces personnel arrested six Indonesian men, believed to be part of the same group, about 1km from the scene,” he said in a statement.
However, it was uncertain how many people were in the boat.
Hussin said the survivors were handed over to the Immigration Department.