Body found in container in Malaysian port

Malaysian police found a dead body in a 40-foot container at Penang port, sent from Chittagong port, on Saturday 15 October.

Police discovered the decomposed body, while the port officials were shifting the box to a depot.

The container was sent to the Malaysian port from BM Container Depot in Chittagong where a fire broke out on 4 June and chemical blasts killed 49 people and injured hundreds.

The local agent of the vessel carrying the container, Swasdee Atlantic, operated by Sinokor Merchant Marine, said Malaysian police is now investigating the matter.

BM Depot officials said they sent the box to the Chittagong port after a necessary check on 4 October and reached Penang port on 10 October.

They noted that after the depot fire incident, they handle only empty containers and are very cautious in carrying out any activities.

The Executive Director of BM Container Depot, Mainul Ahsan Khan, said that before sending the empty container to the port, photos and videos were taken to be sure that nothing are inside the box.

“This is a normal procedure for any empty container,” pointed out.
He added that containers are also checked before they enter the port. Had there been anything inside, it could have been detected there.

The Managing Director of Globe Link Associates, the local agent of Sinokor Merchant Marine, Moinul Haque Chowdhury, said they were informed by Sinokor about the incident. He noted that Malaysian police has been investigating the matter.

Chittagong port spokesperson, Omar Faruk said the port authority has also been checking how the incident happened.

In the past, several similar incidents have occurred in Chittagong port. In 2017, Babul Tripura, a worker at a container depot was rescued from a container at the port. The container was to be shipped to Singapore.

Also, in 2011, a dead body of a worker was found, and another worker was rescued alive from a container in Singapore port that was shipped from Chittagong port.