KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysian police say 13 bodies, believed to be Indonesian illegal immigrants, were found washed ashore after their boat capsized in bad sea conditions.
District police chief Rahmat Othman says the bodies of four men and nine women were discovered on a beach in southern Johor state by members of the public early Tuesday.
He says authorities found an overturned wooden boat not far from the beach, and that a search and rescue operation was underway. Rahmat says the boat was believed to be carrying 30 to 35 people, most likely Indonesians trying to sneak into the country.
Many Indonesians travel on boats believed to be old and unsafe to work in Malaysia illegally, or to return to their hometowns.
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