{{Short description|Illegal fishing group}} The '''Bandit 6''' was a group of six vessels which were illegally fishing Patagonian toothfish in the Southern Ocean. Actions by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and national governments resulted in all six vessels being detained or sunk.
==Background== thumb|Patagonian toothfish Patagonian toothfish and the related Antarctic toothfish are relatives of cod that are sold under the name "Chilean Sea Bass." Illegal fishing vessels like the Bandit 6 do not report their catch, violating the regulations set by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources.<ref name="Mongabay">{{cite news|last1=Gaworecki|first1=Mike|title=Have the ‘Bandit 6’ poached their last toothfish in the Southern Ocean?|url=http://news.mongabay.com/2015/06/have-the-bandit-6-poached-their-last-toothfish-in-the-southern-ocean/|access-date=31 March 2016|work=Mongabay Environmental News|date=1 June 2015|language=en-US}}</ref> They often also use banned, environmentally damaging fishing methods such as gill nets.<ref name="TakePart">{{cite news|last1=Hill|first1=Taylor|title=Sea Shepherd Is Hunting the Last of the World’s Most Notorious Poaching Vessels|url=http://www.takepart.com/article/2016/02/10/sea-shepherd-bandit-6-poaching-illegal-fishing|access-date=31 March 2016|work=TakePart|date=10 February 2016}}</ref>
In November 2014, Sea Shepherd launched Operation Icefish, a campaign against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in the Southern Ocean. Six vessels in particular had been operating illegally for over ten years; Sea Shepherd dubbed these vessels the "Bandit 6." The six ships were ''Kunlun'', ''Perlon'', ''Songhua'', ''Thunder'', ''Viking'', and ''Yongding''.<ref name="PhuketLast">{{cite news|title=Last toothfish poaching vessel of 'Bandit 6' sunk|url=http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/Last-toothfish-poaching-vessel-Bandit-sunk/63436#ad-image-0|access-date=31 March 2016|work=Phuket Gazette|date=15 March 2016}}</ref> Four of the ships, ''Kunlun'', ''Songhua'', ''Viking'' and ''Yongding'' had at one point been owned by Vidal Armadores, a Spanish company associated with toothfish poaching.<ref name="Pala">{{cite news|last1=Pala|first1=Christopher|title=The Hunt for the Last Chilean Sea Bass Poachers|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/06/17/chilean-sea-bass-toothfish-thunder-sea-shepherd/|access-date=31 March 2016|work=Foreign Policy|date=17 June 2015}}</ref><ref name="Rogers" />
==Operations against the Bandit Six== In December 2014, the Sea Shepherd vessels {{MV|Bob Barker}} and {{MY|Sam Simon}} sailed to the Southern Ocean in search of the Bandit Six.<ref name="PhuketLast" /> On 17 December the ''Bob Barker'' spotted the ''Thunder'' and began chasing it.<ref name="Pala" /> Three of the boats, ''Kunlun'', ''Songhua'' and ''Yongding'', were spotted and stopped by the New Zealand Navy patrol vessel {{HMNZS|Wellington|P55|6|HMNZS ''Wellington''}}.<ref name="Darby">{{cite news|last1=Darby|first1=Andrew|title=Pirate fishers spotted off Australian Antarctic base|url=http://www.smh.com.au/environment/pirate-fishers-spotted-off-australian-antarctic-base-20150202-1341qu.html|access-date=1 April 2016|work=Sydney Morning Herald|date=2 February 2015}}</ref> The crews claimed that the three ships were registered in Equatorial Guinea, but the government of Equatorial Guinea said that this was not true.<ref name="False flags">{{cite news|last1=Field|first1=Michael|last2=Vance|first2=Andrea|title=Toothfish poachers fly false flags|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/65109734/antarctic-toothfish-poachers-flying-false-flags|access-date=1 April 2016|work=Stuff.co.nz|date=16 January 2015}}</ref> Interpol purple notices were issued out for all three vessels at the request of the New Zealand government.<ref name="False flags" /> The crews refused to allow their vessels to be boarded, and weather conditions meant that the ''Wellington'' could not force a boarding. The ''Wellington'''s crew gathered information about the vessels and the patrol boat returned to port.<ref name="False flags" /> On 2 February 2015, the ''Sam Simon'' spotted ''Yongding'' and ''Kunlun'', and pursued ''Kunlun'' for eight days, driving it out of the fishing grounds and collecting nets the ''Kunlun'' left behind, which the ''Sam Simon'' delivered to Mauritius.<ref name="Pala" /> In March, the ''Kunlun'' arrived at Phuket, Thailand, with 182 tons of toothfish on board, which the crew of the ''Kunlun'' tried to offload as grouper; Thai authorities detained the ship.<ref name="PhuketEscaped">{{cite news|last=Simonelli|first=Isaac|title=Escaped toothfish-poaching vessel netted in Senegal|url=http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/Escaped-toothfishpoaching-vessel-netted-Senegal/63097#ad-image-0|access-date=26 April 2016|work=Phuket Gazette|date=9 February 2016}}</ref> Also in March, the ''Viking'' was detained by Malaysia, but was later released after paying $71,500 in fines.<ref name="Rogers">{{cite news|last1=Rogers|first1=Cory|title=Fiery end for the last of the toothfish pirates|url=https://news.mongabay.com/2016/04/fiery-end-for-the-last-of-the-toothfish-pirates/|access-date=26 April 2016|work=Mongabay|date=6 April 2016|language=en-US}}</ref>
Meanwhile, the ''Bob Barker'' (later joined by the ''Sam Simon'') was still pursuing the ''Thunder''. The chase covered over 10,000 nautical miles and lasted 110 days, the longest pursuit of an illegal fishing boat on record.<ref name="nyt">{{cite news |last=Urbina |first=Ian |date=28 July 2015 |title=A Renegade Trawler, Hunted for 10,000 Miles by Vigilantes |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/world/a-renegade-trawler-hunted-for-10000-miles-by-vigilantes.html |newspaper=The New York Times }}</ref> On 6 April, the ''Thunder''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s captain radioed a distress call, claiming the vessel had collided with something. The Sea Shepard vessels moved to assist, and all 40 of the ''Thunder'''s crew were rescued. Three Sea Shepherd crew boarded the ''Thunder'' and reported that cabin doors on the vessel had been tied open.<ref name="nyt" /> This combined with the lack of evidence for a collision and the fact that the ''Thunder''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s crew cheered as the ship sank led the Sea Shepherd crews to believe that the ''Thunder'' had been intentionally scuttled to hide evidence of illegal fishing.<ref name="nyt" />
On 22 April 2015, the ''Perlon'' was spotted and boarded by Australian Customs and Border Protection Service and Australian Defence Force officials.<ref name="Berkovic">{{cite news|last1=Berkovic|first1=Nicola|title=Customs nabs notorious illegal fishing boat|url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/customs-nabs-notorious-illegal-fishing-boat/news-story/6ce0bd31ab64b695b0a483717e8d2100|access-date=26 April 2016|work=The Australian|date=24 April 2015}}</ref> The Australian Fisheries Management Authority alerted other governments in the area about the ''Perlon'', and when the ship arrived in Malaysia in May, it was detained. The crew of the ''Perlon'' were later fined $445,000 and ordered to forfeit the cargo, valued at approximately $1.3 million.<ref name="Perlon fined">{{cite news|title=Illegal Fishing Vessel Crew Fined|url=http://www.maritime-executive.com/article/illegal-fishing-vessel-crew-fined|access-date=26 April 2016|work=Maritime Executive|date=7 August 2015}}</ref>
On 19 May, Peter Hammarstedt, captain of the MV ''Bob Barker'', was on sabbatical in Mindelo, Cape Verde, when he noticed a familiar-looking ship had arrived at the port. He took a photo of the ship and forwarded it to New Zealand authorities, who confirmed that the ship was the ''Songhua''. The ''Songhua'' was joined the next day by the ''Yongding'', and on 21 May both were boarded and detained by Cape Verde port authorities.<ref name="Pala" />
In September 2015, the ''Kunlun'' escaped from Phuket. The Phuket authorities had allowed the ''Kunlun'' to refuel so that it could keep its cargo frozen.<ref name="PhuketEscaped" /> The ''Kunlun'' was next seen in Senegal in early February 2016, claiming to be registered in Indonesia. Senegalese authorities detained the ship.<ref name="PhuketEscaped" />
The Sea Shepherd flagship {{MV|Steve Irwin}} searched for the last of the Bandit 6, ''Viking''. When the MV ''Steve Irwin'' located the ship, they alerted the Indonesian authorities.<ref name="Rogers" /> On 25 February 2016, the Indonesian Navy seized the ''Viking'' near Tanjung Berakit, Riau Islands province.<ref name="Snook">{{cite news|last1=Snook|first1=Laura|title=Indonesian Navy scuttles FV Viking, world's most-wanted IUU pirate fishing ship|url=http://aecnewstoday.com/2016/indonesian-navy-scuttles-fv-viking-worlds-wanted-iuu-pirate-fishing-ship/#axzz44WOd5NRo|access-date=26 April 2016|work=AEC News Today|date=16 March 2016|language=en-US}}</ref> On 14 March, the ''Viking'' was destroyed by Indonesian authorities.<ref name="Mongabay" />
==See also== *Sea Shepherd Conservation Society operations
==References== {{Reflist}}
Category:Poachers