U.S. Coast Guard officials seized nearly 600 pounds of illegally caught fish in federal waters off southern Texas Thursday.
USCG shared a video of them finding five lanchas, which are fishing boats used by Mexican fishermen frequently during illegal activities. They found 22 fishermen engaged in illegal fishing.
#USCG Station South Padre Island crews & the CGC Jacob Poroo crew, worked w/ #CG Sector Corpus Christi watchstanders and CG Air Station Corpus Christi crews, to stop five #lanchas with 22 Mexican fishermen engaged in illegal fishing.
More here: https://t.co/waJXmIit7U pic.twitter.com/4Pb1769zd5
— USCG Heartland (@USCGHeartland) December 31, 2022
After stopping the men, they seized three sharks, 590 pounds of red snapper, fishing gear, radios, GPS devices, and high flyers on board.
The men were arrested and transferred to border enforcement agents.
USCG asks that if you witness suspicious activity or illegal fishing out to 200 miles offshore, to contact the U.S. Coast Guard at 361-939-0450.