12 Vietnamese poachers nabbed in Tawi-Tawi

MANILA, Philippines – Twelve crewmembers of a Vietnamese boat have been arrested on suspicion of poaching in the waters of Tawi- Tawi.

The boat was among four Vietnamese vessels spotted by Philippine Coast Guard  personnel some 3.6 nautical miles off Kang Dakula Island on Friday, Cmdr. Armand Balilo, PCG spokesman, said yesterday.

“After a two-hour chase, they caught up with one of the boats said to be the mother ship,” Balilo said.

The PCG operatives did not find any fish on board, but they suspected the crewmembers were poaching because the lights of the boat were turned off.

The Vietnamese vessel with bow markings QNG 90379 TS was brought to Bongao town for investigation.

Balilo said they have alerted the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) about the incident.

“We informed our counterparts from the Vietnamese coast guard,” he added.

It was the third suspected case of poaching by foreigners reported by the PCG.

On May 11, 18 Vietnamese fishermen were arrested after two monitoring, control and surveillance (MCS) ships of the PCG caught three fishing boats while poaching off Calayan Island in Cagayan. The fishing boats were found carrying large quantities of frozen tuna.

On Monday, 25 Chinese fishermen on two boats flying inverted Philippine flags were caught in the vicinity of Sabtang Island in Batanes on Monday. PCG personnel said they did not find any fish, but saw several fishing equipment on board.

Balilo said the PCG would deploy additional MCS ships to patrol the waters near Batanes and Cagayan if requested by the BFAR.