According to an officer from Sittwe’s no. 1 police station, local police found two US made hand-grenades and three rounds of explosives in possession of the suspects.

“The hand-grenades were recovered from a machine boat harbored at Sat Ro Kya Creek jetty no. 19 in Sittwe’s Kathe Ward where the suspect was hiding. A group of police personnel led by Inspector Aye Khin Maung were searching for bombs on September 16th following a secret tip-off. The police on duty discovered the hand-grenades in a plastic bag,” said the police officer.

One boatman on the machine boat was arrested by the police in connection with the incident. Following his confession, the police also arrested another boat worker from his residence.

The second suspect admitted that he got the hand-grenades from a fishing boat in Bangladesh two years ago when the boat was drifted into Burmese waters after its machine engine broke down.

The second suspect also claimed that they kept the hand-grenades in his machine boat as a means of defense against potential enemy attacks. Meanwhile, the police have filed a case at Sittwe Myoma police station under Myanmar’s Explosives Act.