A CAPITOL task force also seized stingrays at the Mandaue City public market as shown in this December 2015 file photo
ABOUT 12 stingrays weighing 18 kilos were seized from some stalls at the Mandaue City public market’s wet section in a surprise inspection by the Cebu Provincial Anti-Illegal Fishing Task Force (CPAIFTF) at dawn yesterday.
Task force chief Lyndon Ruiz said each stingray is worth P2,700 and is sold at P150 per kilo. He said the vendors were issued a warning since it was their first offense.
But they will be placed under observation by the Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Adjudication Board (Farab), Ruiz said. Second and third offenses will be dealt with more severely, he said.
The vendors were identified as Modesta Patindol, Leonard Fabillar and Elvira Casasadaba of Barangay Mantuyong, Mandaue City, and Barangays Tugbongan and Pulpogan in Consolacion town, respectively. Ruiz said the stingrays will be disposed of at their nursery areas.
The amended Provincial Ordinance 2012–05 known as the Provincial Fisheries and Aquatic Resources ordinance of Cebu prohibits the sale and disposal of stingrays and other rare endangered species.