KOTA KINABALU: A public tip-off led to the arrest of four men who were caught catching fish using explosives in Sabah’s east coast Lahad Datu district.
A call was made to the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) at about 1.40am on Thursday (Nov 16) after explosions were heard off Bangingod beach.
Lahad Datu MMEA director Commander Nik Mohd Rizam Nik Mohd Fauzi said officers were immediately deployed to the location some 0.1 nautical miles south of the beach.
“Our men spotted two pump boats believed to be carrying out fish bombing activities in the area,” he said on Friday (Nov 17).
He said the four suspects, aged between 18 and 35, were believed to be from the Philippines and did not possess any valid identification documents.
“Their boats were also not registered.
“We then seized the boats as well as a fish bomb paraphernalia, and five fish believed caught using explosives,” he added.
Nik Mohd Rizam said the suspects were being probed under Section 26 of the Fisheries Act 1985 for catching fish using explosives, poison or other corrosive substances.
He warned the maritime community not to resort to fish bombing activities, as they are unlawful and could harm the aquatic ecosystem and endanger people’s lives.
He urged the public to report any such activities or other crimes at sea to the Lahad Datu MMEA operations centre at 089-885727 or the Malaysian Emergency Response Services (MERS) 999 emergency number.
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