Australian Border Force removes 17 illegal fishermen from boats at Cassini Island and Cobourg Peninsula

More than a dozen illegal fishermen were ousted from Australian waters on Tuesday after they were intercepted by border force officers.

A suspicious boat was detected on Tuesday near Cassini Island, about 15km off the Kimberley coast, during the Australian Border Force’s Maritime Border Command’s targeted patrols of the Kimberley Marine Park.

Officers stopped the boat and discovered it was a foreign fishing vessel with seven men on board.

Upon boarding the boat, they seized 700kg of salt, a diesel-powered canoe, and fishing equipment.

A second foreign boat was detected off the Northern Territory’s Cobourg Peninsula on Tuesday after being reported by a business and a community member.

It was intercepted in the peninsula’s Port Essington inlet and 10 men were identified on the boat before ABF officers boarded for inspection.

Officers seized 300kg of salt, four mobile phones used for GPS to tag fishing areas and a range of fishing equipment.

AFMA plans to forensically examine the phones in a bid to detect and deter future illegal fishing in Australian waters.

The illegal boats were escorted north outside of the Australian Economic Exclusion Zone following the seizures.

It comes as a navy mission to capture another two illegal boats was abandoned late last month due to hot conditions in Kuri Bay, about 400km north of Broome.

Tourism operator Peter Tucker said he was guiding two naval vessels to a mangrove forest in the bay on August 25, where he had spotted two illegal fishing vessels a day earlier.

The boats were docked just outside the mangroves, where the illegal Indonesian fishing boats were concealed, before the lead officer on the job announced she was aborting the mission and returning to base.

Mr Tucker said he questioned the decision, until the officer said: “Peter, this is our second trip. We’ve been on water for nearly four hours. We are hot. We need a break.”

He said the latest episode reflected the ABF and navy’s lack of understanding of Kuri Bay and the broader Kimberley coast.

“It’s quite concerning the lack of knowledge the authorities have in working the tides up there,” Mr Tucker said.

Earlier last month, Mr Tucker had assisted authorities in intercepting 33 fishermen with 700kg of sea cucumber and 4kg of shark fin in Kuri Bay.

Suspicious activity can be reported to Border Watch online or by calling 1800 06 1800.

Illegal fishing activity can be reported by contacting CRIMFISH on 1800 274 634 or intelligence@afma.gov.au.