A group of men in the Korsakov district of southern Sakhalin was detained by border guards on suspicion of illegally buying and processing Far Eastern sea cucumbers. The incident is reported by TASS.
About 16,500 sea cucumber samples were seized, with a total value exceeding 11 million rubles. Officials from the border department of Sakhalin Region of the FSB of Russia noted that the damage from illegal extraction of aquatic biological resources amounted to more than 11 million rubles, as there were no documents proving legal origin. Investigative and operational activities are ongoing.
At the detention site, authorities found 16,414 dried Far Eastern sea cucumbers along with the necessary equipment. The border guards identified suspects under Article 175 (acquisition or sale of property known to have been obtained through criminal activity) and Article 256 (illegal extraction of aquatic biological resources) of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. A court decision on the detained individuals will be issued soon. (TASS)
Earlier, border guards on Sakhalin seized 7.2 million rubles worth of sea cucumbers. Law enforcement officials reported that the suspects had collected 5,305 sea cucumbers, weighing a total of 320 kilograms. The individuals were apprehended quickly, and among the items observed at the scene were a rubber boat, a vehicle, and diving equipment. (TASS)
During an international exhibition and forum titled “Russia,” Rosrybolovstvo chairman Ilya Shestakov indicated that there are no current plans to expand the experiment to restrict caviar exports or other fish products carried by air passengers from Kamchatka. (TASS)
Previously, the Federal Security Service (FSB) closed a black caviar smuggling network operating within Russia. (TASS)