Bangkok, Thailand — September 9, 2015 — A notorious black-listed fishing vessel has broken free of Thai naval authorities off the Thai resort island of Phuket and sailed into international waters.
Thai officials say the rusting and decrepit 625-ton Taisan has left behind unpaid bills of  $US66,000 ($94,000) and has on board millions of dollars worth of illegally caught fish.
Thai authorities met on Wednesday to decide whether to send a navy ship in pursuit.
“We blinked and the ship was gone,” Charoen Chamniklang, chief of the Royal Thai Customs and investigation suppression bureau told Phuketwan​ news.
In January the New Zealand navy said the ship, then called the Kunlun, used “evasive tactics” to thwart boarding attempts in Antarctic waters.