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Coast Guard crews seized a total of approximately 3 miles of long line fishing gear set by multiple Mexican fishermen operating illegally in U.S. waters over the past twenty-four hours.

Last night, Coast Guard Cutter Amberjack sighted multiple vessels moving at a high rate of speed southwards the maritime border. Unable to interdict the vessels, Amberjack returned to the vicinity of initial sighting, where crew members removed 700 yards of long line gear late last night and recovered an additional 4,400 yards this morning. The majority of the gear was found approximately 35 miles off the coast of South Texas.

Each mile of long line has scores of baited hooks and is capable of catching hundreds of fish per mile set. The seized lines contained 175 red snapper, 16 sharks, 3 stingrays and several other reef fish. Approximately 170 of these fish were found alive and released at sea.

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