Australia nabs 19 RI fishing boats

Australia nabs 19 RI fishing boats

AUSTRALIA: Nineteen Indonesian boats have been impounded in Australia's latest crackdown on foreign vessels that poach fish in its northern waters, officials said on Sunday.

Some poachers compound their crime by catching protected species like dolphins and dugongs and cutting them up for bait, Queensland Primary Industries Minister Henry Palaszczuk said.

Authorities expected a record catch of illegal boats this year, with 53 foreign vessels caught so far.

Nineteen Indonesian boats were stopped and their 120 crew arrested over a four-day period last week.

An Indonesian skipper was jailed last week for a month and fined A$13,600 (US$8,800). He faced a Cairns court after authorities found a dead dolphin on his vessel in Queensland's Gulf of Carpentaria.

Indonesian poachers generally go for sharkfin and sea cucumber, known in Asia as "trepang". --DPA