CEPESCA REQUESTS COURT TO RULE ON ILLEGAL BLUEFIN TUNA SCHEME AND LAUNDERING OF PROFITS

Cepesca requests court to rule on illegal bluefin tuna scheme and laundering of profits.

•  Cepesca values the statements of the Minister Luis Planas: “this is not the reality of our fishing sector as a whole, which on the contrary respects legality”.

The Spanish Fishing Confederation (Cepesca) demands the Court rule decisively on the laundering scheme of illegal catches and fraudulent trade of bluefin tuna, in accordance with the Order of the Central Court of Instruction No. 3 of Madrid, in the framework of “Previous Duties – Abbreviated Procedure 0000091/2018”, which establishes that the facts reported therein by the eight individuals and twelve companies under investigation may constitute up to seven crimes .

Cepesca believes that this type of behaviour is unacceptable, not only in the fishing sector, which is characterised by a continuous effort to implement better practices in its activity, but also in all other related sectors, such as the Spanish marketing and catering sectors, whose prestige and international reputation can be damaged by these kinds of acts, especially in the case of a high-quality product such as bluefin tuna.

The sector also values the statements made by Minister Luis Planas on the matter, who, in addition to calling for “respect” and “vigour” in the investigation, stated that “this type of behaviour is not the reality of the entirety of our fishing sector, which, on the contrary, respects the law”.

The Magistrate of the Central Court of Instruction No. 3 of Madrid, Mrs. María Tardón Olmos, has proposed:

“to proceed with the present investigation by means of the abbreviated procedure” against the aforementioned individuals and legal entities, considering that the facts described in the Order may constitute up to seven crimes.

Cepesca recalls that the improvements in the management and control measures adopted within ICCAT over the past 12 years allowed the Spanish authorities to detect and uncover this major alleged scheme of illegal catch laundering and fraudulent trade of Bluefin tuna in 2018.

The Civil Guard investigation, called Tarantelo, revealed a network that, according to the Civil Guard, imported annually more than 3,500,000 kilos of illegal bluefin tuna into the country, mainly from Malta and Italy, generating an illegal profit of around 25 million euros a year.

It is worth remembering that Cepesca chose to appear as a key contender in the case opened following this investigation as its Board of Directors believe that the seriousness of these facts and behaviours directly affect the fishing sector and, consequently, the founding objectives of the employer, among which are to promote the development of sustainable and responsible fishing, as well as the fight against illegal fishing.

About Cepesca

Cepesca, the most representative national business organisation in the European Union, brings together 42 associations of inshore and offshore fishing vessel owners, representing more than 800 fishing companies, 928 vessels, more than 10,000 crew members and a tonnage of 218,821.94 GT. Its objectives include improving the competitiveness of fishing enterprises, promoting crew training and generational replacement, encouraging the development of responsible and sustainable fishing and combating illegal fishing.