Interpol attributes the growth of these fishing crimes to the depletion of living marine resources.
Many crimes related to illegal fishing are linked to serious crimes such as human trafficking or smuggling of drugs and explosives, Interpol reported this Wednesday when announcing the results of an international operation.
During the Ikatere operation, carried out between June and October 2021 in 34 countries, more than 1,700 inspections were carried out in which nearly a ton of illicit products were seized, ranging from protected species, to explosives and drugs, Interpol said in a statement. .
So far, 40 people have been arrested while other investigations into these irregularities continue their course.
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Interpol attributes the growth of these fishing crimes to depletion of living marine resources. The use of explosives as an illegal method of fishing is growing due to the “progressive depletion of fish populations, which pushes vessels to keep catches at any price,” says Ilana De Wild, Director of Organized and Emerging Crime at Interpol. .
“It has been discovered that the manufacturers of the bombs used in some terrorist attacks in recent years also supply explosives to the illegal fishing industry,” he adds.
Criminals use fishing boats to traffic drugs and people because their “nomadic” navigation patterns and long periods at sea make it easy for these vessels to mix at sea without suspicion, explains Interpol.
Forgery of documents to cover up crimes
During the investigation, Kenyan security forces rescued 121 trafficked men, women and children in Lake Victoria.
False boat certificates, fishing licenses or crew documents were used “to hide the true activity of the vessels: launder captures and cover up cases of labor exploitation or human trafficking”, Emphasizes Interpol.
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Around 70 boats were associated with illegal fishing activities during the Ikarate operation, mainly because they did not present valid fishing licenses for the areas in which they were investigated.
“The only way to effectively combat crimes associated with illegal fishing is international cooperation between the country that inspects the fishing documentation and the country that allegedly issued it,” insists Stephen Kavanagh, Interpol’s executive director of Police Services. (I)
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