[Straits Times] AN OFFICIAL says authorities have stepped up patrols off the southern Malaysian coast following an increase in piracy.First Adm Zulkifli Abu Bakar of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency says up to 10 men armed with knives and pistols have robbed crew aboard four ships off Johor state in the past week.
He said on Wednesday his agency has increased its patrols and will send helicopters to monitor the area because of the 'sudden increase' in robberies at sea. The pirates mostly stole valuables and cash in the pre-dawn attacks.
Mr Bakar says last year there were seven cases of sea robbery between January and November.
He says: 'We are stepping up our efforts to combat this robbery.' He says the pirates are suspected to be Indonesians.