Murder at Sea

[Anchor Lead]

The captain and the chief engineer of a South Korean ship sailing in the Indian Ocean were killed by Vietnamese sailors on board. Authorities will launch an investigation as soon as the ship arrives at Victoria Port on the Seychelles Islands.

[Pkg]

Two murders were committed on board the South Korean ship Kwang Hyun 803 on June 20. Two Vietnamese sailors who were under the influence of alcohol at the time killed the captain and the chief engineer of the vessel using deadly weapons when the ship was passing by the Seychelles Islands in the Indian Ocean. The captain was found dead in the steering house, while the other slain crew member was found in the bedroom. They were first found dead by an Indonesian crew. Sources say a Korean navigation officer and other crew members captured the two suspects and isolated them in the sailors' living quarters. The Kwang Hyun 803 left the port in February of last year with three Korean, seven Vietnamese and eight Indonesian crew members on board.

[Soundbite]Kim Young-do(CEO, Kwangdong Shipping) : "I visited the area in early June. I detected no suspicious signs back then. The crew members were doing fine."

The ship's operating company, Kwangdong Shipping, is discussing ways to make the ship return safely with the navigating officer and the Coast Guard. In four days the ship is expected to arrive at Victoria Port on the Seychelles Islands.

[Soundbite] Lee Kwang-jin(Official, Busan Coast Guard) : "We will help the ship arrive at the port safely and facilitate the investigation by Korean officials."

The Busan Coast Guard has set up an investigation team and will dispatch investigators to the site of the murders a few days from now to interrogate the Korean navigation officer and find out the exact motive behind the killings.