The two vessels were intercepted by the Sam Simon at 66˚ 39 South 063˚ 43 East, inside Australian waters with prohibited fishing gear on their decks. The region is managed by Australia in accordance with its international obligations as a Member of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR).

Both the Yongding and the Kunlun haveInterpol Purple Notices issued for them, and are on the CCAMLR black list of Illegal, Unregulated, Unreported (IUU) fishing boats. Both vessels were flying the Equatorial Guinea flag at the time they were located.

Captain of the Sam Simon, Sid Chakravarty, radioed the vessels, ordering them out of the region. The Yongding then turned directly toward the Sam Simon, missing a collision by 10 metres.

Captain Chakravarty, said, “This is the second instance in the last month that both the Yongding and the Kunlun have been found in Australian waters. Both vessels have a long history of fishing violations, and the aggressive actions of the Yongding indicate that they have something to hide. It is abundantly clear that the New Zealand and Australian governments should not have let the vessels out of sight when they were first found.”

The Yongding and the Kunlun, along with the other poaching vessel that was intercepted by the New Zealand Navy, the Songhua, are believed to have links to known Spanish crime syndicate, Vidal Armadores.