Navy seizes 128 boats off Batam

BATAM, Riau: The Navy has at least 128 vessels in a series of operations between May 27 and Sept. 3, the commander of the Western Fleet, Vice Adm. Yohannes Didiek Heru P., has said.

"The vessels were seized for a variety of reasons, ranging from smuggling, illegal fishing and piracy to sunken treasure theft, sand mining and causing marine pollution," he said on Friday.

Didik explained that of the 128 vessels detained in the Strait of Malacca, the Singapore straits as well as the waters off West Kalimantan and Riau, only 19 of the perpetrators/captains had been taken to court.

He explained that the number of seized vessels had dropped substantially from the 356 detained last year, in respect of which 24 people had been prosecuted.

"The drop in the number of vessels shows that the Navy's operations have helped discourage potential transgressors from committing crimes," he said. --JP