Navy detains 34 Thais, four ships
Navy detains 34 Thais, four ships
Indra Harsaputra, The Jakarta Post, Surabaya/Arafura Sea
Thirty-four Thais have been apprehended and four ships
intercepted by the Navy for allegedly smuggling diesel fuel and
poaching in Indonesian waters, a Navy official said on Monday.
Commander of the Navy's Eastern Fleet Rear Adm. Yosaphat Didik
Heru Purnomo said the Navy had apprehended last Thursday during
its patrol of the Arafura Sea Jeditson Manope, the Thai captain
of Indonesian-flagged tanker ship the MT Nuhuyut along with 10
Thai crew members for allegedly smuggling 40 tones of diesel
fuel.
He said the Navy ship KRI Tjiptadi-881, captained by Maj.
Kisdiyanto, had also apprehended last Wednesday 23 other Thais,
who were allegedly involved in poaching in the Arafuru Sea, in
three Thai-flagged ships the KM Dechmanee-24, the MV Sriwicaci-2
and the MV Khanti Chai.
The MT Nuhuyut captained by Jediston was reportedly
intercepted by the KRI Kakap 811 led by Maj. Antonius Widya and
was then taken to the Navy port in Tual, Southeast Maluku
regency. The Navy also arrested three Indonesian crew members of
the ship.
"In the preliminary investigation, the ship (MT Nuhuyut) was
not equipped with a delivery order nor purchase receipts and was
transporting diesel fuel without the proper documentation,"
Yosaphat said.
He said the Navy would handle the case together with
investigators from the Energy and Mineral Resources Department.
If found guilty, they suspects could face up to four years'
imprisonment or a fine of up to Rp 40 billion (US$4 million) as
stipulated in articles 53 and 22 of Law No. 22/2001 on oil and
gas. The crew also allegedly violated the law by selling fuel to
foreign ships, which is punishable with up to six years'
imprisonment and a fine of up to Rp 60 billion.
"If the crew are proven to be selling subsidized fuel to
foreign ships we will seek the severest punishment for them as
our own people are suffering fuel problems," Yosaphat said.
Apart from the MT Nuhuyut, the Navy also intercepted three
Thai-flagged fishing ships and apprehended a total of 23 Thai
crew members. However, the Navy did not provide more details of
the incident, only saying the ships and crew had been taken to
the Navy port in Tual, Southeast Maluku.
When the Navy boarded the three ships, they found 80 tones of
fresh fish. The crew were unable to produce the documents
required to fish in Indonesian waters.
No response was available from the Thai Embassy regarding the
incident.
The Navy, which has been working to crack down on illegal
fishing by foreigners, apprehended a Chinese-flagged ship, also
allegedly caught poaching in the Arafura Sea last month. During
this operation, a Chinese crew member was killed and two others
were injured.