A patrol team of the Việt Nam Coast Guard discovers a fishing boat off the coast of An Giang Province carrying 60,000 litres of oil of unknown origin on December 9. — Photo courtesy of Việt Nam Coast Guard

AN GIANG — The Việt Nam Coast Guard has detained a fishing boat transporting about 60,000 litres of oil of unknown origin off the waters in the Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta.

At around 9:40pm on December 9, a patrol team from Coast Guard Intelligence Division No. 2, in coordination with Coast Guard Region No. 4 Command, detected and inspected fishing boat CM-91872-TS about one nautical mile northeast of Hòn Tre Island in An Giang Province.

On board were four crew members led by captain Nguyễn Văn Út Hiền, 44, of An Giang Province (formerly Kiên Giang Province).

Hiền failed to present invoices or documents proving the legal origin of the fuel, and the boat was deemed unsuitable for transporting the type of goods on board. None of the crew members possessed the professional certificates required for seafarers.

The patrol team brought the boat ashore, and handed the cases over to Squadron No. 422 under the Coast Guard Region No. 4 Command based on Phú Quốc Island for further investigation.

The Coast Guard Intelligence Division No. 2 said it is implementing its peak campaign against crime, including drug prevention, human trafficking, smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods in the last months of the year ahead of the upcoming Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday.

The division is tasked with monitoring the sea from Đắk Lắk Province (formerly Phú Yên Province) to An Giang Province (formerly Kiên Giang Province), including the Trường Sa (Spratly) Archipelago.

It is also assigned to detect and combat violations of law, such as national security crimes, smuggling, and trade fraud at sea. — VNS