TOKYO, August 28. /ITAR-TASS/. A fishing vessel whose captain is Russian has been detained near Japan’s northern Hokkaido Island for illegal catches in the Japanese exclusive economic zone, Russia’s Consulate General in Sapporo told ITAR-TASS on Thursday.

“We have been informed about the detention of a Sierra Leone-flagged ship for crab poaching in Japanese waters,” an official of the diplomatic mission said. “The ship’s captain - Russian Aleksandr Sinebabnov, has been detained.”

The consulate has no information about the number of the vessel’s crew and their citizenship.

According to the Japanese Coast Guard, a vessel with the displacement of 37 tonnes was detained at 01:15am, local time, Thursday (20:15mp, Moscow time, Wednesday) 60 kilometres east of Cape Soya. During the first interrogation the captain rejected all the charges of illegal catches.