News

Lankan fined, jailed for poaching in Maldives

09 Mar, 2013

A Sri Lankan national has been convicted of illegally poaching in Maldivian waters and sentenced to six months in prison and fined MVR500,000 (USD32,425), the Maldives Media reported today.
The captain of ?Sea Shoal? Karunakalage Lalith Douglas Fernando was charged on November 19, 2012 with illegally fishing inside Maldives Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
Haveeru news online reported that Fernando has now been convicted and sentenced as he had confessed to the crime in court and was ordered to pay the fine within one month of the sentence.
Last year the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) captured the Sri Lankan fishing boat in the Maldives Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
The boat was captured after the international environment protection group Greenpeace reported sighting two Sri Lankan fishing boats fishing in Maldivian waters while they were returning to Sri Lanka after their visit to the Maldives.
Sri Lankan fishing boats tend to stray in Maldivian and Indian waters to catch fish. ?(Colombo Gazette)

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