Oil smuggler busted in Phuket waters
PHUKET: An oil smuggler was busted in Phuket yesterday after officials discovered 500 liters of illegal oil in a hold on a fishing vessel.
“Acting on a tip-off, we tracked down Kor Sinsomboon 2 at about 11:30am. The captain was unable to produce his captain’s licence. However, the sea was too rough to search the vessel, so we escorted Manoon Muang-ngam, 57, and his boat back to Rassada Pier,” explained Phuket Marine Police Chief Panya Chaichana.
With custom officials aiding in the investigation, the team discovered 500 liters of illegal oil in plastic bottles in the hold of the boat.
Known as ‘green oil’ the untaxed oil is usually sold to Thai fishermen at discounted prices in international waters.
Mr Manoon was charged 10,000 baht for smuggling the illegal oil into Thai waters and an additional 5,000 baht for not carrying his captain’s licence, Col Panya said.
Mr Manoon paid the fines and was released.
— Chutharat Plerin
Join the conversation and have your say on Thailand news published on The Thaiger.
Thaiger Talk is our new Thaiger Community where you can join the discussion on everything happening in Thailand right now.
Please note that articles are not posted to the forum instantly and can take up to 20 min before being visible. Click for more information and the Thaiger Talk Guidelines.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.