Singapore police have strongly refuted news reports carried by the Indonesian press that a boat belonging to the Singapore Police Coast Guard had collided with an Indonesian vessel carrying fishermen in waters between Singapore and Indonesia.
The news report also alleged that after the collision, the PCG vessel had left the scene without offering any assistance. It was alleged that the Indonesian vessel suffered extensive damage to its left side and caused the engine to be detached, while the fisherman onboard that Indonesian vessel suffered a broken leg and injuries to his waist, where he subsequently fell into the waters.
The injured fisherman was rescued by his friends who were on the other boats, and he was taken to an Indonesian hospital. However, in respond to queries from the media, the Singapore Police strongly refuted the reports from Batam News, stating that all PCG vessels are equipped with CCTVs, and none of the CCTV captured any sort of collision. There were also no markings on the boat to indicate any kind of collision. However, PCG confirmed that the boat was pursuing a cluster of fishing boats who were intruding into Singapore waters. They noticed that one boat subsequently capsized, but the man was rescued by the others before the PCG boat could get to them. The intruders were then warned by the PCG officers against entering and fishing in Singapore waters illegally.
