One of the fishing boats. — Photo by MMEA Sarawak
KUCHING (April 20): The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) detained three foreign fishing boats found to have encroached into Malaysian waters at 5.20am on Friday.
MMEA Sarawak director First Admiral Kamal Ariffin Jusoh said all three fishing boats were found some 156 nautical miles north of Tanjung Po by their asset KM Tun Fatimah that was patrolling the area.
“Upon inspection, seven crew members and a skipper aged between 22 and 62 years old were found to not possess valid identification and travel documents,” he said in a statement today.
Further inspection also revealed the three boats had no registration numbers and originated from Indonesia.
All eight men were detained and their boats towed to the MMEA headquarters jetty in Muara Tebas for further action.
The case is currently being investigated under Section 15(1)(a) of the Fisheries Act 1985 and Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.
“We estimated the total seizure amounts to over RM1 million,” he said.
Kamal said MMEA will not compromise with individuals found to have encroached illegally into Malaysian waters.
For any information on misconduct or criminal activities and emergencies at sea, MMEA Sarawak can be contacted at 082-432544 or MERS 999.