By Aaron Recuenco
Authorities have arrested 14 Vietnamese fishermen after they were caught poaching off the waters of Paluan town in Occidental Mindoro, police reported yesterday.
Supt. Imelda Tolentino, spokesperson of the MIMAROPA (Mindoro Occidental and Oriental, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan) regional police, said the arrest came after local authorities and volunteers spotted two fishing vessels while conducting regular patrol at around 1 a.m. on Wednesday.
“The crew of the vessels are fishing in the area which is well within our territory,” said Tolentino.
Local authorities then intercepted the vessels and eventually boarded them, resulting in the arrest.
The two captains of the fishing vessels were only identified as Huang and Long while the rest were certain Huy, Twan, Teo, Quan, Minh, Phu, Binh, Tuan, Huy, Kinhaw, Hiu, and Hung.
“We have difficulty getting their names due to language barrier,” said Tolentino.