Once aboard, police inspectors determined that the vessel's Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) Fishing Authorization had expired. Under the regional fisheries management framework adopted by FFA member countries, foreign fishing vessels must maintain a valid FFA Good Standing Authorization. Without this valid authorization, the vessel was not legally permitted to fish in Tuvaluan waters.

Police inspectors also observed sharks being discarded overboard without being recorded in the vessel's official logbook.

Following this inspection and analysis of vessel tracking data, the Tuvalu Police Service officers identified multiple indicators of possible illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing activity and placed the vessel under arrest. It was escorted by the Allankay to the Port of Funafuti, where it remains detained pending further investigation. 

Sea Shepherd's Partnership to Help Protect Tuvalu's Waters from Illegal Fishing 

Since 2024, Sea Shepherd Global has supported the Tuvalu Police Service in patrolling Tuvalu's 750,000-square-kilometre Exclusive Economic Zone to strengthen fisheries enforcement, deter illegal fishing, investigate suspected dark vessel activity, and gather evidence for potential prosecutions.

This arrest follows earlier successes under the partnership. In 2024, Tuvalu Police Service officers aboard Allankay recovered 9.5 kilometers of illegal longline fitted with 171 hooks from within Tuvaluan waters. The gear had already captured seven yellowfin tuna, one marlin, and a juvenile silky shark, a species classified as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), before it was seized as evidence.

What Is “AIS Spoofing”? 

AIS is an internationally recognized maritime safety system that automatically broadcasts a vessel's identity, position, course, and speed to nearby vessels and shore-based authorities. Originally developed to reduce the risk of collisions at sea, AIS has also become a critical tool for monitoring global fishing activity, enabling governments and civil society to track vessel movements and identify suspicious behavior.

The deliberate transmission of false AIS data, known as AIS spoofing, creates the false appearance that a vessel is operating somewhere other than its true location, often to conceal unauthorized incursions into foreign or protected waters, evade surveillance and fisheries enforcement, disguise encounters with other vessels, or obscure the origin of illegally caught fish.

Lu Rong Yuan Yu 138 has previously been detected operating without transmitting AIS data in Tuvaluan waters. During this incident, however, its AIS remained active while transmitting a position inconsistent with its actual location within Tuvalu’s waters. 

Learn more about Operation Tuvalu: https://www.seashepherdglobal.org/latest-news/tuvalu-launch/