Crew caught smuggling weapons to China

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An Isle Of Mann-registered ship was detained by authorities in Finland last week for smuggling missiles and explosives out of the country.

The vessel was stopped and the local bomb squad called in when officials at the port of Kotka found sixty nine Patriot defense missiles and 150 tonnes of general explosives on board.

According to Petri Lounatmaa a Finnish Customs spokesman, investigating officers did not know the origin of the missiles or who was supposed to receive them.

“We have impounded the explosives and missiles and asked the Defense Ministry to transport and store them.” Mr. Lounatmaa told the New York Times.

Alarms sounded in the port shortly after dock workers discovered explosive material stored on open pallets which lead police to conduct a search of the ship’s cargo containers.

What they found shocked them. Inside containers labeled and manifested as “fireworks” where highly sophisticated Patriot defense missiles.

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