One of the two fishing boats detained by MMEA Miri off Kuala Niah yesterday.
MIRI (May 18): The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) here detained two fishing boats and 13 Vietnamese crew off Kuala Niah here for various offences yesterday.
MMEA Miri director Captain Md. Fauzi Othman in a statement today said they also seized 8,000 litres of diesel and 500 kilogrammes (kg) of fish.
He said the first boat was spotted about 32 nautical miles off Kuala Niah by the patrol team at around 8.30am.
“When they realised the patrol team’s presence in the area, they immediately released their fishing equipment into the sea to avoid from being detained.
“Further check on the five crew and a skipper, aged between 29 and 45, revealed that they had no identification documents,” said Md Fauzi.
He added that their boat also had not been given the permission to carry out fishing activities in the area.
Meanwhile, Md Fauzi said the second boat was detained some 38 nautical miles off Kuala Niah at around 10am.
He said the boat was manned by a skipper and six crew aged between 20 and 62.
“When checked, the boat had a valid license but five crew including its skipper did not posses passports. They only had temporary working permit which had already expired,” said Md Fauzi.
All 13 suspects who were brought to court today had been ordered to be remanded for 10 days to facilitate investigation under the Fisheries Act 1958.