CHARGES will be filed today against the crew of two commercial fishing vessels that were caught fishing in municipal waters off Madridejos town in Bantayan Island, northern Cebu at 5 am last Saturday.
Romel Mirasan, chief of the Bantay Dagat team in San Remigio town, said they caught the crew using an illegal fishing device called Danish Seine, locally known as hulbot-hulbot, near the waters of Tanguingui Islet in Madridejos town.
“They entered municipal waters and fished there without clearance from the Coast Guard. The fishing device can destroy coral reefs,” Mirasan said.
The Bantay Dagat team confiscated 70 tubs of fish from the crew.
Mirasan said the vessels were operated without permits from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and the Coast Guard.
The boat owners of the two commercial vessels are reportedly from Cebu City and Cadiz City, Negros Occidental.
Charges of violating the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998 will be filed against the crews at the Cebu Provincial Prosecutor’s Office.