Australian authorities turned around a small wooden boat, which then broke up, stranding seven Indian nationals on an Indonesian beach, police say.
The men and three Indonesian crew were discovered on Tuesday afternoon after coming ashore at Kupang, West Timor, their boat buffeted by waves.
Kupang police chief Dominicus Savio Yempormase says the men claim they made it to Ashmore Reef before being intercepted by the Australian navy.
"When they got there, they were stopped by the Australian navy patrol and were given petrol and sent back to Indonesian waters," he told AAP.
"But then, they couldn't reach land.
"The boat became broken and they floated around until they were helped by local people."
The Indian men have been handed over to immigration officials while police questioned the crew about the payments for the voyage, Mr Dominicus said.
They have told police a woman paid them Rp140 million ($A13,273) to buy the boat and take the men to Australia.
"We're still trying to find the woman who acted as the middle person," he said.
"It still seems they don't want to be frank about this woman."
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