Maritime enforcement officers rounding up the crewmen of two Vietnamese vessels found fishing illegally in the waters of Malaysia.
KUCHING: Two Vietnamese fishing vessels disguised as local cargo boats and their crew of 47 Vietnamese citizens have been detained for illegal fishing in Malaysian waters.
Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) Sarawak deputy operations director Captain Shahref Steve Mac Queen Abdullah said both vessels were detained at about 6pm Wednesday some 170 nautical miles from Tanjung Po.
“During the patrol operation, one of our maritime vessels located the position of and subsequently inspected the two boats,” he said in a statement issued yesterday.
“Upon inspection, all the crew in the fishing boats, aged between 23 and 59, failed to produce valid travel documents besides not having the official written permit to fish in Malaysian waters,” he added.
The estimated amount of seizures, he revealed, was about RM4.5 million including the value of boats, fishing equipment and gear and various fish catches. The case is being investigated under the Fisheries Act 1985.
Shahref said the MMEA welcomes information from the maritime community to report on any unlawful activities directly to its 24-hour hotline at the Sarawak Maritime Operations Centre at 082-432544.