Six Vietnamese fishermen including the captain of their vessel were arrested on Friday morning by Malaysian authorities for allegedly engaging in illegal fishing in Johor waters. An illicit catch worth 1 million ringgits (US$245,789) was reportedly seized during the operation.
At around 11:45am, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) observed and intercepted a Vietnamese vessel about 20 miles northeast of Sedili Besar in Kota Tinggi District, Nanyang Siang Pau (Malaysia) reported.
The operation resulted in the seizure of a catch of live sharks and prawns with an estimated value of 1 million ringgits. Six crew members aged between 29 and 41 were arrested for illegal fishing.
The authorities released the sharks back into the sea; the prawns will be auctioned off.
The offenders’ boat was towed to the Tanjung Sedili Maritime jetty to facilitate an investigation under the Fisheries Act 1985.