May 14, 2012

Sea Shepherd captain Paul Watson arrested
Faces charges of attempted murder
Confrontation happened over illegal shark fin hunt

THE leader of controversial environment group Sea Shepherd has been arrested on what is believed to be an attempted murder charge.

Captain Paul Watson was arrested in Germany over the weekend and will be extradited to Costa Rica on an outstanding arrest warrant from an incident which occurred in 2002.

In a statement Sea Shepherd said the arrest was related to a "violation of ships traffic" incident and involved a Costa Rican vessel called the Varadero in Guatemalan waters illegally hunting for shark fins.

"While escorting the Varadero back to port, the tables were turned and a Guatemalan gunboat was dispatched to intercept the Sea Shepherd crew," the statement read.

"The crew of the Varadero accused the Sea Shepherds of trying to kill them, while the video evidence proves this to be a fallacy. To avoid the Guatemalan gunboat, Sea Shepherd then set sail for Costa Rica, where they uncovered even more illegal shark finning activities in the form of dried shark fins by the thousands on the roofs of industrial buildings."

The group says Mr Watson and his ship intercepted the Varadero on the orders of the Guatemalan Government but later encountered a Costa Rican gun boat, the crew of which has accused Mr Watson of attempted murder.

The statement said video evidence proved the claims were untrue.

More to come

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http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/more-news/sea-shepherd-leader-paul-watson-arrested-in-germany-on-attempted-murder-charge/story-e6frf7l6-1226354640604

"Captain Paul Watson was arrested today at Frankfurt airport on a warrant for his arrest for his intervention for the sharks campaign in 2005 in Costa Rica (in the documentary Sharkwater campaign)."

http://cyberwhalewarrior.com/2012/05/13/breaking-news-sea-shepherd-captain-paul-watson-arrested-in-frankfurt-germany/