Coast Guard law enforcement crews say they detected and interdicted two Mexican lancha boat crews engaged in illegal fishing in federal waters off southern Texas, Friday afternoon.
Coast Guard crews stopped two lanchas with a total of nine Mexican fishermen engaged in illegal fishing. Two lancha boats and 819 red snappers, totaling 3,483 pounds, were seized. The Mexican fishermen were detained and transferred to border enforcement agents for processing.
A lancha is a fishing boat used by Mexican fishermen that is approximately 20-30 feet long with a slender profile, typically has one outboard motor, and is capable of traveling at speeds exceeding 30 mph. Lanchas are frequently used to transport illegal narcotics to the U.S. and fish illegally in the United States’ Exclusive Economic Zone near the U.S.-Mexico border in the Gulf of Mexico.
Coast Guard Sector/Air Station Corpus Christi has detected 99 lanchas, 38 of which were halted, that were north of the U.S.-Mexico Maritime Border since Oct. 1, 2017.
If you witness suspicious activity or illegal fishing in state waters (out to 9 miles offshore), please contact the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s “Operation Game Thief” at 1-800-792-GAME (4263). For all suspicious activity or illegal fishing occurring in federal waters (out to 200 miles offshore), please contact the U.S. Coast Guard at 361-939-6393.
