fish |
The global fight against fisheries
crime has scored a major success, with the convictions of three crew
members of a vessel subject to an INTERPOL Purple Notice for illegal
fishing.
A court in Sao Tomé and Principe found
the captain, chief engineer and second engineer of the Thunder guilty
of various illegal fishing charges. The vessel, which sank off the
coast of the West African nation in April, was the focus of multiple
international investigations into illegal toothfishing activities.
The Thunder was the subject of an
INTERPOL Purple Notice issued in 2013 at the request of New Zealand
supported by the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) and
the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries, to warn countries worldwide of
the vessel’s participation in illegal fishing and the methods being
used to attempt to conceal its identity and activities from law
enforcement.
INTERPOL has since supported
investigations in at least 15 member countries into the global
activities of the Thunder, other vessels suspected to be part of the
same illegal fishing fleet, and the operating network which owns the
fleet.
An investigative task force, comprised
of 10 member countries – Australia, Canada, Indonesia, New Zealand,
Nigeria, Norway, South Africa, Thailand, United Kingdom and United
States – was established in 2012 to facilitate exchange intelligence
and information on the Thunder and its network.
Through its Project Scale initiative to
combat fisheries crimes, INTERPOL provided technical support to the Sao
Tomé authorities in securing evidence in the case, and also
facilitated the transfer of physical evidence and statements collected
by the environmental group Sea Shepherd to the Sao Tomé authorities,
via German law enforcement authorities, to aid the investigation.
Experts from Canada and INTERPOL
assisted in evaluating the evidence gathered to determine its potential
value for ongoing investigations in Sao Tomé, Spain and Australia,
among others.
“Transnational fisheries crimes are
complex and far-reaching, but the successful outcome of the Thunder
case demonstrates how, when countries work together to share
intelligence and connect investigations, these criminals can be caught
and their networks dismantled,” said David Higgins, head of INTERPOL’s
Environmental Security unit.
INTERPOL Purple Notices have also been
issued for four other illegal fishing vessels – the Kunlun, Snake,
Songhua and Yongding – believed to be operated by the same
Spanish-based network.
In August, INTERPOL held a regional
investigative analytical case meeting in Singapore where investigators
from Southeast Asia and Spain exchanged information on ongoing cases
related to all five Purple Notice vessels, and the Organization
continues to support its member countries conducting investigations
into the illegal fishing fleet and its operators.
The announcement of the Thunder
convictions comes as member countries gather in Cape Town, South Africa
for the 3rd INTERPOL Fisheries Crime Working Group.
Source: INTERPOL
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