DHAKA, Bangladesh – A coastguard official said Wednesday (June 11th) the five people found dead on the human smuggling boat it rescued in the Bay of Bengal were shot by the crew and traffickers, AFP reported.

Coastguard commander Harun-or-Rashid said at least 23 passengers had bullet wounds, with another 151 of more than 300 passengers either injured or starving.

Clashes erupted after passengers were kept on the ship for more than two weeks with little or no food, he said, adding other traffickers from nearby boats then began firing on the ship.

Officials arrested two Thai crewmembers and a human trafficker from Burma on the Malaysia-bound vessel, which Rashid said was a Thai cargo boat.