PESORSA DOS

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Captain fined for not compying with fishing regulations

In November 2024, a criminal court in Cork imposed fines on the captains of two German fishing vessels for not complying with fishing regulations, the "Ortegal Tres" and "Pesorsa Dos". The captain of the "Ortegal Tres" was sentenced to a fine of 37,500 euros, and the captain of the "Pesorsa Dos" must pay 115,000 euros. Both had, among other things, left the nets in the water longer than permitted. According to a court spokesman, no appeal has been lodged against the verdicts to date. Both trawlers are based in Hamburg and belong to German companies, which in turn are controlled by Spaniards. The two ships are operated from La Coruña, but are sailing under the German flag in order to be able to use the German fishing quotas. Both were detained by the Irish Navy in the Atlantic off Ireland in January 2023 because of violations of fishing regulations discovered at sea and escorted to the port of Castletownbere. The inspections also revealed details of the employment conditions of the crews. Most of the crew members were coming from Indonesia and were apparently fobbed off with dumping wages The Asian fishermen on the "Ortegal Tres" apparently worked for only around 800 euros per month in shifts of 12 hours on and six hours off, with no days off during the week. However, the German minimum wage does not apply to the fishing vessels because they operate outside the 12-mile zone Different contracts for each crew member appeared on the "Pesorsa Dos". The Hamburg authority "Ship Safety Department" was responsible for the inspection, but its employees could not prove any clear misconduct.

Spanish captain returned for trial

The Spanish captain of the 'Pesorsa Dos' has returned for trial after the ship was detained by the Irish Naval Service for alleged breaches of EU fishing regulations in Irish waters. The captain was brought before a special sitting of Bandon District Court, on Feb 1, following the detention of the vessel by the Irish patrol vessel 'LE George Bernard Shaw'. He was charged with a total of 12 fishing offences on various dates between Jan 5 and Jan 24, while fishing within the exclusive fishing limits of the Irish State. He was charged with two logbook offences of failing to record the proper depth that his vessel was fishing at and with failing to record the proper soak times or times that he allowed his nets to stay in the water while fishing with Irish exclusive fishing limits. He was also charged with a total of nine separate offences of allowing his nets to exceed the permitted soak times of 72 hours allowed for the gear while fishing within the exclusive fishing limits of the State, contrary to Section 14 of the Sea Fisheries and Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006. The captain was charged with a 12th count of failing to facilitate the safe and effective boarding of the 'Pesorsa Dos' by Irish fishery protection officials on Jan 23 in that the boarding ladder broke while being used by officials for the purpose of boarding to inspect his vessel. The State had no objection to the captain being released on bail pending his trial, but was making two separate applications seeking to extend the detention of the vessel at Castletownbere until a bond for 245,000 to cover the cost of the catch, gear, potential fines and legal costs, were lodged with the court by vessel's owners. Defence solicitor, Dermot Conway said that this matter had been agreed with his client and he formally applied for bail which Judge Colm Roberts granted on the captain's own bond of ?5,000. Judge Roberts then returned the accused for trial to the Cork County call over of the next sittings of Cork Circuit Criminal Court, starting on Jan 31.

Detained trawler escorted to Casltetownbere

The 'Pesorsa Dos' has been detained off the Irish south-west coast, on Jan 21, 2023, by the patrol ship 'LE George Bernard Shaw', but it took several days to haul its gear before it could be escorted into Castletownbere, County Cork, on Jan 26. Also the fishing vessel?s boarding ladder broke when the Naval Service patrol crew was trying to gain access to the vessel. The ship had left the port of La Caruna on Jan 2, had shot gill nets and was fishing in deep water for monkfish. The regulations governing the use of such nets states that they can be left in the water for no more than 72 hours and must be hauled in within that time limit.