KUALA SELANGOR: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) has detained a fishing boat and a Class C fishing vessel off the coast of Tanjung Karang here.
Selangor MMEA director Maritime Capt Siva Kumar Vengadasalam said both vessels were detained following patrols on Tuesday (Aug 23).
"We first detected a fishing boat 34.2 nautical miles (63.3km) west of Tanjung Karang at around 2.15pm.
"It was operated by a 44-year-old man with 10 local anglers aged between 40 and 76 on board," he said in a statement on Thursday (Aug 25).
He said the boat did not have a valid licence to operate and did not have communications equipment or safety equipment such as fire extinguishers.
"The boat, its operator and all the anglers were taken to the Marine Police Jetty at Pulau Indah for further action. We are investigating the case under the Merchant Shipping Ordinance 1952," he said.
Capt Siva Kumar said they detained the Class C vessel at around 2.50pm on the same day.
He added that the vessel was detected also about 34 nautical miles west of Tanjung Karang, operated by an Indonesian man with two of his countrymen on board.
Siva Kumar said the three, aged between 20 and 39, are being investigated for violations of the Fisheries Act 1985 for catching fish outside of its permitted area as the boat was registered at Hutan Melintang, Perak.
"The three men were also detained for not having valid identification or travel documents. The vessel and men were brought to the Marine Police Jetty at Pulau Indah for further action," he said.
