Thursday, October 22, 2009

Cargo ship passenger wanted in Sri Lanka for terrorism

BY STEWART BELL, NATIONAL POSTOCTOBER 22, 2009 11:09 AM

One of the 76 migrants who arrived off the British Columbia coast in a cargo ship last weekend is wanted in Sri Lanka for terrorism, according to two sources familiar with the investigation.

The sources said the man was Kartheepan Manickavasagar, a 26-year-old who is the subject of an Interpol notice issued by Sri Lankan authorities. He is wanted for an unspecified terrorism offence.

Meanwhile, the mysterious migrant ship that arrived in Canadian waters early on Saturday under the name Ocean Lady has been identified as the Cambodian-flagged Princess Easwary, a government official said.

The ship is owned by Ray Ocean Transport Corp., a company registered in the Seychelles, although its mailing address is in the Philippines, according to shipping records kept by Lloyd’s Register.

The vessel’s operator is listed as Sunship Maritime Services, which uses the same mailing address in Cebu, Philippines. Sunship’s phone appeared to be out of service yesterday and an email to the company was returned as undeliverable.

The arrival of the ship in B.C. waters has sparked an intensive investigation into the origins of the vessel and the identities of the passengers, who arrived with either fraudulent documentation or none at all.

The screening has so far detected one match with the Interpol database of fugitives. The man is suspected of involvement with the Tamil Tigers, separatist guerrillas outlawed by Canada for terrorism and notorious for their suicide bombings.

No comments:

Post a Comment