PATTANI: A Vietnamese fishing trawler has been seized and five crew members arrested for illegally catching sea cucumbers in the Gulf of Thailand in this southern province.
A fishery patrol vessel was dispatched to the Gulf in Pattani after authorities received information that a foreign vessel was fishing in Thai waters off Parane district on Friday.
The team spotted the trawler catching sea cucumbers in the area and stopped it for a search. Five crewmen, all Vietnamese nationals, were taken to shore by two vessels.
They were charged with illegal fishing and illegal entry. All were handed over to the Panare district police station for legal action, said Sarawut Wanrananon, head of the fishery patrol team.
