Story highlights At least 23 died when the ferry caught fire Sunday morning local time

Captain questioned over reports he abandoned ship

(CNN) Police have detained the captain of a ferry that caught fire off the coast of Indonesia's capital, killing at least 23 people, amid allegations he was the first to jump ship.

Divers are still searching for 17 people still missing from Sunday's fire.

"We have detained the captain of the boat, and are now taking his statement," Jakarta's maritime police director, Hero Hendrianto Bachtiar, told CNN Indonesia.

He said that three crew members and two port authority staff were in police custody.

At a press conference, Antonius Tonny Budiono, director general for sea transportation at the Indonesian ministry of transport, addressed reports that the captain was the first to leap off the Zahro Express ferry when it caught fire.

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