Five people believed to be Pakistanis drowned after their boat capsized off Johor coast, police said today.

One teenager survived the accident and marine police have launched a rescue operation in case there were more survivors, Mohamad Amirul Abdullah, a local policeman told AFP .

The deadly incident happened off Penggerang, in the southern Johor state.

"We believe the five died due to drowning after their boat capsized. We found Pakistani travel documents on them. The teenage who survived has been admitted in the Kota Tinggi hospital," said Mohamad Amirul.

The cause of the accident was not known nor where the victims were headed. Police said two of the victims were men. The other three were a woman, a girl and a male teenager.

Mohamad Amirul said the marine police checking for more survivors since they were unsure how many people had been on board the boat.

It is easy for migrants to enter Malaysia, which has a long coastline.