GEORGETOWN: Two fishing boats with nine Indonesian crew members have been detained during two separate checks and inspections here yesterday on suspicion of trespassing into Malaysian waters.
All the crew members were detained by the Penang branch of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (Maritim Malaysia) while they were conducting patrols for Ops Tanjung and Ops Pertiwi.
Maritime Malaysia Penang director Captain Maritime Abd Razak Mohamed said that the boats were detained about 45 and 48 nautical miles southwest of Pulau Kendi here, at around 11.40am and 12.10pm.
He said that the inspection and checks for the first boat found that it was manned by four crew members while the second boat had five.
"All of them are Indonesian nationals between 17 to 41 years old.
"Both boats involved were found to be from Pantai Labu, Deli Serdang, North Sumatera," he said in a statement here today.
Abd Razak said further inspection also revealed that they failed to produce any identification documents or permit to catch fish in Malaysian waters.
Therefore, they are suspected of unlawful wrongdoing under the Fisheries Act 1985 and the Immigration Act 1959/63 of catching fish in Malaysian waters without a permit from the Malaysian Fisheries director-general as well as not having any valid travel and identification documents.
"Both the boats and the nine crew members as well as their equipment to catch fish have been impounded and seized, thereafter brought to the Limbongan Batu Maung Jetty before being handed to the investigating officer for further investigations," he said.