By 3 News online staff
Four South Korean officers from the fishing vessel Oyang 75 have been ordered to pay a total of $424,500 at the Christchurch District Court this morning.
They were charged with dumping fish overboard in order to catch more valuable fish and still fall under fishing quotas.
An estimated 405 tonnes of fish were dumped in two trips off the South Island, valued at up to $1.4m.
“It’s the worst case of fish dumping that the ministry has ever prosecuted and brought before the courts, and the quantity of fish is massive,” says Fisheries prosecutor Grant Fletcher.
The ship's officers have also been accused of maltreating Indonesian crew members.
Five crew were initially charged over the dumping but one has since appealed the fine. He has 10 days to defend the charge.
The Oyang 75 – valued at $12m – has been forfeited and the Government is seeking to seize the vessel.
“We will order that vessel to return to New Zealand,” says Peter Hyde of the Ministry of Primary Industries. “There will then be another hearing and interested parties will have a right to make a claim over the vessel.”
3 News