Pirate Tuna Vessel Detained At Fiji Harbor ff

Authorities in Fiji have detained a South Korean tuna fishing vessel at the Kings Wharf in Suva on suspicion that its crew may have been fishing tuna illegally in Pacific waters.

The vessel “Weng Teng No 688” has been black-listed by the Inter American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) in the United States.

Having arrived in Suva, the crew then changed its name to Mahkoia Abadi.

“At the moment the vessel is grounded pending our investigation and we understand that the vessel was also carrying illegal goods such as liquor, cigarettes and pornographic materials,” said Minister for Fisheries, Ilaitia Tuisese. “The customs authority is carrying out investigations into the matter but so far I can confirm that there were also other illegal activities going on in the ship.”

Greenpeace campaigner, Nilesh Goundar said they alerted the authorities after one Greenpeace campaigner saw a crew scraping off the ship’s name and painting a different name on it.