A joint operation by inspectors from the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries of the Junta de Andalucia and SEPRONA, the environmental wing of the Guardia Civil, has resulted in the seizure of eight boats in Marbella which were engaged in illegal fishing.
The boats were pretending to be engaged in sport fishing, but were in fact using professional bait rigs to illegally catch octopus. The fish were then sold on to the catering industry without passing through the various health check procedures.
It is estimated that the boats were catching around 500 kilos of fish per day, many of them under the specified size limit. Sport fishing for octopus is forbidden, the use of professional bait rigs for recreational fishing is prohibited and the marketing of fish caught by recreational fishing is also prohibited.
Quite a few infringements.
The boats have been impounded, as have the bait rigs, pending a judicial hearing.