26 Oct 2009

Lone asylum seeker arrives on Australian island off PNG

2:56 pm on 26 October 2009

An asylum seeker travelling by himself has arrived by boat at an island in the Torres Strait between Australia and Papua New Guinea.

A spokesman for Australia's Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor says the man presented himself after landing on Saibai Island in the northern Torres Strait on Sunday evening.

The spokesman said the man's nationality was not known at this stage.

The man will be transferred to Christmas Island for processing.