MOF Subdues Foreign Crew Member Armed with Weapon in Jeju Waters... Rescue Completed

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced on the 24th that it subdued a foreign crew member who was rampaging with a weapon in the waters off Seogwipo, Jeju, and safely rescued nine crew members, including Koreans.

According to the Ministry, the nearshore longline fishing vessel C (72 tons), registered in Seogwipo, Jeju, carrying a total of 10 crew members?five Koreans and five Vietnamese?lost contact since the previous day while fishing.

The shipowner requested search and rescue from the Jeju Fishing Vessel Safety Operation Office, and the Namhae Fisheries Management Team under the Ministry dispatched the national fisheries patrol vessel Mugunghwa 3 to the scene.

Later, at around 9:16 a.m. that day, the Coast Guard reported that the C vessel was sailing north about 50 nautical miles (92.6 km) southeast of Seogwipo.

Mugunghwa 3 attempted to communicate with the C vessel but received no response, so at around 12:30 p.m., four fisheries supervision officers boarded the C vessel directly. Immediately after boarding, they confirmed that a Vietnamese crew member was threatening the captain with a weapon and occupying the wheelhouse, and quickly subdued the crew member, the Namhae Fisheries Management Team reported.

The fisheries supervision officers aboard Mugunghwa 3 safely rescued all the remaining crew members on the C vessel and handed over the foreign crew member who caused the disturbance to the Jeju Coast Guard.

The Coast Guard is currently investigating the circumstances under which the foreign crew member threatened the captain.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.