US Coast Gaurd performing securuity checks of pleasure craft @ Tall Ship Event

U.S. Coast Guard Seizes 350 Pounds Of Illegally Poached Fish In Texas

The United States Coast Guard has apprehended three fishermen found illegally poaching in federal waters off the coast of southern Texas this past weekend. The authorities seized 100 pounds of red snapper from the boat.

According to Fox News, crew members aboard the federal ship named Benjamin Dailey reported the illegal activity to watchstanders at the Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi command center in Corpus Christi, Texas.

The Coast Guard reports that a three-man fishing crew was aboard a slim motorboat between 20 and 30 feet long. It was an easily identifiable form of watercraft. The men were stopped approximately 37 miles north of the Maritime Boundary Line which separates the U.S. and Mexican delegations of the Gulf of Mexico.

Coast Guard Intercepts Illegal Fishing Operation

“Illegal fishing threatens the security of our maritime border and the prosperity of our marine ecosystems,” said Petty Officer 1st Class Samuel Hogan aboard the U.S. ship that intercepted the illegal fishing operation. As part of the raid, they seized the boat, the boat’s fishing gear, and 350 pounds of prime red snapper. “We will continue working closely with our agency partners to minimize the negative impacts of illegal activities in federal waters,” he said.

The Coast Guards’ announcement indicated that the boat was the particular type of watercraft typically associated with illegal immigration and narcotic smuggling from Mexico. The fact that it was only fish aboard could have been worse.

The Coast Guard urges the public to report any suspicious activity or illegal fishing within 200 miles of the nation’s offshore border at the following hotline: 361-939-0450.

U.S. Coast Guard Recently Seized 600 Pounds Of Illegally Caught Fish

An even larger illegal fishing operation in the coastal waters off of Texas back on December 29th. That’s when the U.S. Coast Guard seized more than 600 pounds and apprehended 22 fishermen from Mexico illegally raiding American waters. 590 pounds of the fish were Red Snapper. The poached harvest fish also included three sharks.

Following that mission, Petty Officer 1st Class Ryan Ortega with the Coast Guard in Corpus Christi congratulated his team. “Through our great collective efforts, we continue to detect and deter illegal fishing occurring in southern Texas waters,” Ortega said. “Our crews are always ready to protect U.S. waters from foreign intrusion and enforce domestic living marine resource laws.”

The Coast Guards’ command center in Corpus Christi is the same unit that boarded a ship back in the summer that had more than 40 illegally taken sharks on board. Just four fishermen were responsible for the entire haul.

Coast Guard Rescues Fishing Crew And Dog Lost In Alaska

Back in mid-December, the U.S. Coast Guard successfully rescued a fishing crew and their dog thanks to the help of a couple of good samaritans. Their 45-foot ship named the Privateer got trapped on rocks just off Esther Island during an awful storm. Six-foot waves and 60-mph wind gusts kept the trio trapped, according to the Coast Guard. And because they had been washed aground, they could not steer back into the water or navigate the storm.

The men made an emergency distress call just before noon. The Coast Guard sent a rescue helicopter and a plane from a base 418 miles away in Kodiak and saved the day as soon as possible.