Poachers from Mexico busted with illegal red snapper haul off Texas

The U.S. Coast Guard this week seized a fishing boat with 200 pounds of red snapper caught illegally by Mexican fishermen in federal waters off southern Texas.

The agency explained in a news release that it also transferred the three fishermen to U.S. Customs and Border Protection “for further processing.”

Several Coast Guard crews participated in the bust Tuesday as the men were observed fishing illegally north of the Maritime Boundary Line.

They were aboard a sleek and speedy vessel known as a launcha. Launchas are typically 20 to 30 feet long and powered by a single outboard engine.

The low-profile boats, which can travel at 30 mph, are commonly used for illegal fishing within the United States Exclusive Economic Zone near the U.S.-Mexico border in the Gulf of Mexico.

Launchas are also used in drug-smuggling operations.

The fish were donated to the Harte Research Institute, and Sea Turtle, Inc., to feed turtles under rehabilitation.