Norway fines Russian ship captain for violating fishing rules
Norwegian police fined captain of the Russian trawler "Nemansky" Andrei Salmin 10,000 U.S. dollars for violating fishing rules, Itar-Tass reports. He was also charged with unauthorized taking of the trawler, arrested by Norway, out of a Norwegian port, said Alexander Savchenko, a bankruptcy manager of the Gold Fish company, which is the owner of the arrested vessel.
Savchenko told Itar-Tass the trawler had no right to sail out into the sea, not mentioning fishing.
"It is not on the Russian registry, and the vessel's documents were obviously falsified, he said, adding that both Norwegian and Russian law-enforcement bodies would be launching a probe that might prove difficult.
The insolvent Gold Fish is registered in Murmansk. It is not on the list of fishery managers of the north or the Kaliningrad region.
According to the Murmansk sea rescue center, Norwegian coastguards detained the Nemansky on January 5 for poaching, and convoyed it to the port of Kirkines.
But the captain, without informing port authorities or waiting for a probe, took the vessel out to the sea.
He might have succeeded in reaching the neutral waters, but the main engine malfunctioned, injuring a mechanic.
The captain maydayed to Norwegians, who towed the Nemansky to the port of Vadso.
Norway said the Nemansky had been in Kirkines since late 2007, and that it was ordered not to leave because it was unclear what nation the vessel belonged to.