5 B\\\'deshis die in Bay as traffickers open fire

At least five Bangladeshis have been killed and 40 others injured in the Bay of Bengal on Wednesday when a group of traffickers opened fire on people in a trawler travelling to Malaysia illegally, coastguards say, report agencies.
Altogether 340 Bangladeshis were on board the vessel, said Bangladesh Coast Guard's east zone Commander Lt Shahidul Islam.
The passengers were trying to illegally cross into the rich South-east Asian country without proper travel documents to try their luck.
The trawler's engine broke down and food supply ran out leading to a clash between the passengers and the traffickers.
Coastguards could not immediately identify the victims.
Earlier report says, the trawler got stranded in the Bay of Bengal near the St. Martin's Island in Teknaf upazila as it went out of order while going to Malaysia.
Hearing the news, the authorities of Coast Guard Teknaf station informed Coast Guard St. Martin's Island station about the matter.
St. Martin's Island union parishad chairman Nurul Amin said that they heard that miscreants fired gunshots prompting some of the stranded passengers to seek help from their relatives over mobile phones.
Contacted, officer-in-charge of Teknaf thana Moktar Hossain said they came to know that a passenger trawler has got stranded in the Bay of Bengal.