REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The Maritime and Fisheries Ministry's Hiu 004 patrol ship has detained a Malaysian fishing vessel for poaching fish in North Sumatra's waters in the Malacca Strait on December 13, a government official stated.

The 56-gross ton (GT) KM SLFA 2675 vessel was caught with 300 kilograms of fish, Director General of the Maritime and Fisheries Ministry's Surveillance of the Maritime and Fisheries Resources Asep Burhanudin noted in a press statement made available to Antara here on Wednesday.

For further investigation, the fishing vessel, with five crew members, was then escorted to the Belawan Port in North Sumatra Province, he remarked, adding that the crew members are all Myanmar nationals.

The officials onboard the Hiu 004 patrol ship also seized a trawl, compass, and 300 kilograms of fish along with a GPS device and other radio communication equipment to be presented as evidence in court, he revealed.

The skipper faces charges under Article 93, Point 2, juncto Article 27 (2) of Law Number 45 of 2009 on Fisheries with a maximum punishment of six years in jail and a fine of Rp20 billion, he noted.

Several days ago, the Hiu Macan Tutul 001 patrol ship had also detained two Filipino fishing vessels, with 49 fishermen onboard, while conducting illegal fishing in the eastern part of Raja Ampat District's waters in West Papua Province.

One of the fishermen had a citizen card of Sorong town, but he could not speak Indonesian language, Hiu Macan Tutul 001 patrol ship's captain, Pryo Kurniawan, informed journalists.

Kurniawan did not reveal the fisherman's identity but said that an investigation into the case was being conducted by Sorong town's Marine and Fisheries Supervision Agency.

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