Police have arrested the managers of two firms operating fishing boats which are accused of illegal fishing in foreign waters.
Thanongsak Raksawong and Suwit Thepprasit were arrested on Sunday, deputy national police chief Srivara Ransibrahmanakul said Monday.
Thanongsak is the manager of Siam Tuna Fishery Co, which operates two fishing boats -- Mook Andaman 028 and Mook Andaman 018. Mr Suwit is the manager of Sales Service (Thailand) Co, which runs three fishing vessels -- Yu Long 6, Yu Long 025 and Hongsifu 68.
The managers face charges of sending boats to catch fish in foreign waters without permission from the Command Centre for Combating Illegal Fishing (CCCIF), which violates a National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) order.
Each offence carries a penalty of up to one year in prison and/or a fine of up to 100,000 baht.
Police are investigating whether there was any human trafficking involved on the boats, Pol Gen Srivara said.
If that turns out to be the case, the managers will face additional charges, he said.
A manager of Three Wonderful Co, which operates a fishing vessel called Seribu, also faces the same charges but is still at large.
Gen Srivara said the manager, Trairong Nim-anusonsuk, told him he would surrender to police Tuesday.
According to Pol Gen Srivara, all six boats were also found to have expired fishing licences.
Brought before a police press briefing Monday, Mr Suwit said he worked for a Taiwanese company which owns two of the fishing vessels and he was pleased to cooperate with the authorities because he was innocent.
He said he would order his crews to bring the firm's two ships back to port for further inspections.
