KUANTAN: Six Vietnamese fishing illegally in Malaysian waters were arrested after a chase that lasted more than an hour near Rompin on Thursday.
A Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) team that intercepted the trawler off Pulau Tioman found that none of the six — aged 19 to 37 — had identification documents.
Pahang MMEA director First Admiral (Maritime) Mazlan Mat Rejab said an air unit had earlier detected the boat.
"It alerted MMEA's assets at sea. They approached the vessel to inspect it. But the crew members sped off.
"The chase went on for more than an hour before the trawler was intercepted about 35 nautical miles east of Tioman. The trawler was taken to the Kuantan slipway for inspection," he said in a statement today.
The suspects could not provide any licence or permit to fish in the country's waters, and they have been detained. The boat, fishing equipment and catch worth about RM1.7 million were seized."
He asked members of the public with information on illegal activities at sea to inform the Malaysia Emergency Response Services (MERS 999) or Pahang Maritime Operating Centre at 09-5717345.
