Kelantan MMEA nabs 23 Vietnamese fishermen, seizes 2 vessels

 

Kelantan MMEA chief Erwan Shah Soahdi said some 1,000kg of fish, fishing equipment, navigation and communication equipment, and 2,000 litres of diesel were seized from the two boats. (Bernama pic)

PASIR PUTEH: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) arrested 23 Vietnamese fishermen and seized two fishing vessels, with a total value of RM3 million, in an operation last Thursday.

Kelantan MMEA director Erwan Shah Soahdi said the two boats were seized some 128 nautical miles off Tok Bali estuary after being spotted at about 7.20am during an operation along the Malaysia-Vietnam maritime border.

“The two boats initially did not cooperate and tried to flee from Malaysian waters. However, they stopped when instructed to,” he told, reporters at the Kelantan MMEA office in Tok Bali today.

The MMEA vessels intercepted the first boat at 8.40am, followed by the second boat at about 9.30m, he said.

Erwan said the first boat had a 17-man crew, including the captain, while the second boat had six crew members, including the skipper. They were aged 19 to 63.

He said MMEA also seized about 1,000kg of fish, fishing equipment, navigation and communications equipment, and 2,000 litres of diesel from the two boats.

He said it took more than 24 hours to tow the two boats to the Kelantan MMEA jetty.

Erwan said the two fishing vessels were suspected of illegal fishing activities in the country’s waters, and the case is being investigated under Section 15(1)(a) for failing to display fishing authorisation documents.

He said the two boat captains were suspected of violating Section 16(3) of the Fisheries Act 1985 while the crew members were being investigated under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 for failing to display valid identification documents. - FMT