Fishermen pay the price of oversight

The captains of two Algerian fishing boats have been fined for failing to give advance notice of their arrival to the Fisheries department.

Nasreddine Benounis, 49 and Mourad Kebdani, 34 were arraigned this morning before magistrate Francesco Depasquale and charged with breaching European regulation EC1005/2008 when they berthed at a Maltese port on May 28.

At law, sea vessels are required to give at least 72 hours notice to the Fisheries and Aquaculture department before calling at a Maltese port. For reasons unknown, this regulation was not adhered to by the captain of the Algerian flagged vessels Beni Louma or the Chahid Hasni Saidi.

Prosecuting police inspectors Priscilla Caruana Lee and Jeffrey Scicluna also requested the court to order the seizure of the fishing vessel as security for any guarantee which may become necessary.

Lawyers Dean Hili and Veronique Dalli, who acted as defence counsel to the Algerians in both cases, entered a guilty plea on behalf of the men.

As a result of their admission, the court found both captains guilty and fined them €2,000 each. The vessel is expected to leave Malta today.