Alaska News

Custody of vessel caught illegally fishing in Alaska transferred to NOAA

The Bangun Perkasa, a 140-foot fishing vessel seized for illegal fishing off Alaska's coast in September is being transferred from the custody of the U.S. Coast Guard to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The NOAA will determine the degree of the illegal fishing, which a press release said includes 30 tons of squid and 30 sharks, then coordinate a sale of the illegal catch.

The ship was seized on Sept. 7 after a Coast Guard cutter -- alerted to the Bangun Perkasa's presence by Japanese authorities who had spotted the vessel -- observed the ship illegally using a three-mile drift net. After boarding the vessel, the crew of the Coast Guard cutter noted observing rats aboard the ship, prompting Sen. Mark Begich to encourage the destruction of the Bangun Perkasa in the open sea.

The ship was seized 2,600 miles off the coast of Kodiak, and was determined to be a stateless vessel. Among the crew were Indonesian, Vietnamese and Chinese deckhands. Deportation efforts began following the ship's seizure.

As for the ship itself, the Coast Guard said in a press release that if the owner of the vessel wants to claim it, there's a procedure for that:

Federal law provides a process where the owner is afforded a reasonable amount of time to come forward and claim the vessel. If the owner of the vessel is not identified within the statutory allotted time, the Bangun Perkasa will be forfeited and sold.

The ship was cleared of rats by an exterminator following its arrival in Dutch Harbor, and has had repairs performed on it to meet environmental standards, the Coast Guard said.

The question becomes whether anyone will come forward to claim the ship, given the illegal nature of the fishing conducted from it.

The same press release notes that the NOAA will forward its findings from its investigation to the Department of Justice "for potential prosecution for numerous violations of U.S. law."

Craig Medred

Craig Medred is a former writer for the Anchorage Daily News, Alaska Dispatch and Alaska Dispatch News. He left the ADN in 2015.

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