Malaysia seizes six illegal Chinese fishing vessels, arrests 60 men

The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) have seized six illegal Chinese fishing vessels from territorial waters east of Johor, and arrested 60 men on board.

Captain Mohd Zulfadli Nayan, MMEA's Tanjung Sedili zone director, said that the vessels from Qinhuangdao, China, were spotted at two separate locations during an agency operation at around 9 am on Friday (October 9), reported The Straits Times.

"We had earlier received a tip-off from the Johor Port Authority about the trespassing vessels. Our patrolling squad then found the vessels near 2.1 nautical miles and 2.3 nautical miles and three of them were found hovering near one another," he said.

He further added that the vessels were carrying six captains and 54 crewmen, all of them Chinese nationals, aged between 31 and 60.

According to The Straits Times, the case was being investigated under a section of the Fisheries Act, for failure to report to department for entering into state waters, which carries a maximum fine of RM 6 million and RM 600,000 for each crew member.

The case was also being investigated under a section of the Merchant Shipping Ordinance for illegal anchoring, which carries a fine of up to RM 100,000 or jail, or both, upon conviction, said Zulfadli.