Missing Malaysian tanker with fuel worth $5.6m likely hijacked by pirates

Marine police say a Malaysian oil tanker that went missing last week carrying fuel worth 21 million ringgit ($5.6 million) and 22 crew members was probably hijacked by pirates.

MT Orkim Harmony, loaded with 7.5 million liters (2 million gallons) of gasoline belonging to national oil company Petronas, was headed to northern Kuantan when communication with it was lost late Thursday near Singapore. It was the second tanker believed to have been hijacked this month in the same area, Fox News reported on Monday.

The deputy director of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, Ahmad Puzi Abdul Kahar, said Monday it was likely taken by pirates, although no ransom demands have been received. The crew consists of 16 Malaysians, five Indonesians and a Myanmar national.