The Coast Guard has apprehended a suspicious boat with 11 Myanmarese crew from the Indian waters in the Andamans Sea after a two-hour chase. The boat was seen by the Coast Guard patrol ships Bhikaji Cama and Rajkamal some nine nautical miles east of the Narcondum Island in the Andaman Sea on the night of July 17. 

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When challenged, the crew began to flee and started dumping some items into the sea. The boat was apprehended when it surrendered following a chase of over two hours. None of the crew carried passport or any fishing gear.

Also, the master of the ship could not explain why they were in the Indian waters and why they were running away from the authorities. This, Coast Guard officials said, raised suspicion that the boat could be used for human trafficking.

The boat was without any registration number written on the hull and was not flying any country's flag.

Large quantity of fuel and water was also found stored in 40-50 drums and large number of used clothes of men and women, which was unusual for such boats, the Coast Guard said. It said VHF communication sets were found hidden in the engine room.

The boat has now been brought to Port Blair and the crew has been handed over to the law enforcement agencies for further investigations.