Fifteen boats, including 10 foreign vessels, have been detained by Russia in the Bering Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk since October for poaching crab, a regional coast guard chief said on Thursday according to RIA Novosti.
Over 150 tons of crab, more than 100 tons of live crab, and 70 tons of other seafood were seized from the vessels, said Alexander Lebedev, who heads the Northeast Frontier Coast Guard department of the FSB.
He said checks of another 60 vessels were conducted and 19 violations of the Russian legislation were found, adding that the economic damage is estimated at over 112 million rubles ($4 million).
This year, Russia has launched a crackdown on the illegal export of crab and other seafood. In May 2007, Russia banned the export of live crab, but large volumes continue to be smuggled out of the country, primarily to Japan and South Korea.