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60 endangered species of sharks, manta rays seized from Viet fishers in Palawan

More than 60 species of endangered sharks and manta rays, dead and covered in blood, were discovered hidden in a storage compartment of a fishing vessel with Vietnamese crewmen, 32 nautical miles southeast off Mangsee Island, in Palawan.

The illegal poachers were apprehended by the Philippine Navy patroling around the area, reported PNA.

Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) field officer Mario Basaya said Tuesday that the Malaysian-registered vessel was seized around 9 a.m. last Saturday.

“There were 13 hammerhead sharks in their fishing vessel which is a highly protected species. So aside from illegal entry, they will be charged for poaching. There are actually three vessels but the other one was left in Mangsee as it could not run, and the others managed to get away,” Basaya said.

Aside from the hammerheads, the BFAR inventory team also counted more than 20 different species of manta rays, 16 black tip, and 20 white tip sharks.

In hidden areas and storages of the boat, the BFAR and a team from Enforcement Unit of the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development Staff (PCSDS) also recorded shark fins being dried.

Rene Sabio, the interpreter for the Vietnamese, said they are residents of a coastal village just a kilometer away from Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam.

He said the men were hired by a Malaysian businessman to work as the fishing vessel’s crew.

“They said it is their first time to work for the Malaysian fishing company, and they just want to earn a living. They did not know that they have already entered the Philippine territory as it was only their second day when the Philippine Navy caught them,” said Sabio.

PCSDS Enforcement Unit officer Michelle Sabuya said the 20 Vietnamese fishermen were scheduled to be brought to the Palawan Prosecutor’s Office for inquest.

Photo and source: PNA

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