Brothel disguised as floating fishing boat discovered in Malaysia

Malaysian authorities have discovered a floating brothel operating from a fishing boat off Malaysia's southern coast close to Indonesia, a news report said Thursday.

Photo: Brothel disguised as floating fishing boat discovered in Malaysia

Three men and 10 Indonesian women were arrested Wednesday for allegedly being part of the brothel's operations, the New Straits Times said. Prostitution is illegal in Muslim-majority Malaysia.

Southern region marine police chief Kamal Bakri Medan was quoted by the paper as saying the arrested people were being held for further investigations, and that the boat was seized, the AP said.

The men jumped off the boat as Malaysian marine police approached the vessel, sitting in Malaysian waters near Tanjung Piai in southern Johor state, just after midnight, the paper said.

The Indonesian women were from the nearby Indonesian island of Batam, the report added.

Clients were charged around US$100 (EUR 75.69) for the womens' company, the paper said, and the vessel would anchor in a set location for up to two weeks before moving to another location.

Kamal was not available for comment and did not respond to messages left by The Associated Press.