200kg of sea cucumbers seized in TN

MADURAI: A coastal security group in Mandapam area, Ramanthapuram district, Tamil Nadu, seized 200 kilograms of sea cucumbers and arrested a smuggler. They found the animals in 26 plastic bags in a rowing boat. Investigation revealed that Asif Ali, 36, had collected them from fishing trawlers returning from a fishing expedition. Sources said that trawl boat fishermen would keep aside all the sea cucumbers caught in their trawl net, and smugglers would collect these sea cucumbers before they reached the fishing jetty. The smugglers pay them based on the weight of the sea cucumbers.