Four Sri Lankan men have been arrested after being discovered dressed as crew and stowing away in a containership destined for the United States.
The men went undetected for almost a week while travelling from Colombo aboard the US-bound vessel.
Maritime Executive reports that the men have been sent home and are under investigation by local authorities, who are also searching for their accomplices in the Port of Colombo, the largest and busiest port in Sri Lanka.
It is believed that the stowaway incident was part of an organized crime attempt, rather than what was initially reported, that youths had been found aboard the vessel.
The men are aged between 25 and 32.
The stowaways boarded the CMA CGM Panama while it was in the Port of Colombo, Sri Lanka on 24 March.
The vessel, a 157 000 dwt containership registered in Malta, was loading clothing manufactured in Sri Lanka to transport from Asia through the Suez Canal, with a stop in Tunisia, before sailing to Canada and the US.
According to media reports, the box ship sailed from Colombo on 25 March with the stowaways apparently undetected for at least a week.
The vessel travelled approximately 7 300 nautical miles and stopped at the entrance to the Suez Canal on 1 April, where it underwent a compulsory security check.
It was then that the captain found the men, who were dressed like the vessel's crew members.
The captain reported the discovery to the shipping company, and the stowaways were moved to another vessel, the Jackson Bay, which was sailing to Malaysia.
The men were detained in a cabin during the journey home, where they were taken to the southern port city of Galle.
The stowaways appeared in court on 11 April and will be kept in custody until the 18th.
Local authorities are investigating how the men were able to enter the port, obtain crew uniforms, and board the vessel.
