Authorities seize P1 M worth of fishing gears, tools, illegally caught fishes in Quezon raid
LUCENA CITY – Nearly P1 million worth of fishing gear, tools, illegally caught fishes, and 77 bottles of 'bigas-bigas' used in dynamite fishing were seized by authorities during a raid in seawater off Barangay Barra on Friday, Jan. 27, in this city.
Joint elements of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR)-Fisheries Protection and Law Enforcement Group (FPLEG) with Regional Intelligence Division-Team-Quezon and the 1st Quezon Provincial Mobile Force Company intercepted an unmarked white and blue fishing vessel during an operation.
Danilo Larita Jr. of the BFAR said that they waited on the shore for the fishing boat to land so they could arrest about seven people for breaking the law.
However, the boat crews quickly jumped off in different directions and abandoned the boat.
"The place was so isolated that they managed to evade the arrest, but the team is still conducting some monitoring of some individuals described by some witnesses,” said Larita.
He said they are monitoring the area because of alleged illegal fishing.
The unregistered fishing boat allegedly violated Sections 92 and 126 of RA 8550 as amended by R.A. 10654, and was turned over to the barangay hall for proper custody.