by Rosli Mansor
The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (APMM) at the Kuala Kurau Maritime Zone detained a fibreglass boat at position 0.2 nautical miles west of Kuala Gula, here around 4.05pm, last Friday.
The Kuala Kurau Maritime Zone Director, Maritime Commander, Mohd Najhan Azman Hamid said, during a routine patrol, the Malaysian Maritime Patrol team detected the boat in question moving in a suspicious manner and was then detained for inspection.
“The result of the inspection found that a total of four local fishing crew members and a skipper, aged between 18 and 54 were on the boat.
“Further inspection of the boat’s documents found that the boat’s licence had expired and the specifications of the engine used were not the same as the one registered for the licence.
“In addition, the original owner did not work on the boat himself,” he said in a media statement today. He also said that all the crew were detained; while the boat and fishing equipment were confiscated and taken to the Kuala Kurau Maritime Zone Jetty for further action.
He said the case was investigated under Section 8 (b) of the Fisheries Act 1985 for violating the valid conditions of the licence in question.
Maritime Malaysia remains committed to combating criminal activities and misconduct at sea.
For all complaints and emergencies that occur at sea, the public is asked to report it to:
Maritime Malaysia at MERS 999 or the Kuala Kurau Maritime Zone Operations Centre (05-7279919) for immediate action.
