Indonesia detains Malaysian-flagged fishing boats for suspected illegal fishing

JAKARTA - The Indonesian Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries detained two Malaysian-flagged fishing boats suspected of illegal fishing in its territorial waters in the Malacca Strait.

The boats, were detected during a patrol at coordinates 03º07’814”N-100º41’911”E and 03º07’501”N-100º41’426”E, respectively at 3.15 am on Thursday.

Eight Indonesian crew members were detained, 1.4 tonnes of fish confiscated, and trawling gear seized, according to its marine and fisheries resources director-general Rear Admiral Dr Adin Nurawaluddin.

"It is suspected that both boats were using prohibited fishing gear, which are highly damaging,” he said in a statement.

They were taken to the Dumai Maritime and Fisheries Resources Monitoring in Riau for further investigation. - BERNAMA