Two Vietnamese fishermen are being held by their crewmates on suspicion of killing their Taiwanese skipper during a mutiny, the Fisheries Agency said yesterday.
“The Fisheries Administration has received reports of the suspected murder of Chen Wen-feng [陳文風] aboard the long-line fishing boat Hung Chieh Wei 18 while it was operating in waters about 185km from Mauritius’ Port Louis on Thursday,” an official with the Fisheries Agency said.
He said that the two alleged murderers were overpowered and brought under control by fellow crewmen.
The official said that the 99-tonne Kaohsiung-based fishing boat headed for the Indian Ocean last February, with 14 crew members aboard. Chen was the only Taiwanese national and the remaining members were from China, Vietnam and Indonesia.
In addition to monitoring of the ship’s position, the Fisheries Administration directed its staff members stationed in Mauritius, a small island country east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean, to help arrange to tow the ship to Port Louis, the official said.
“We’ll also ask the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to study the feasibility of bringing the two suspected murderers back to Taiwan for an investigation,” the official said.
Mauritius does not have an extradition treaty with Taiwan, but a Fisheries Agency official said it would likely agree to send the suspects to Taiwan because the alleged mutiny happened in international waters.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY AFP
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