Shadow Encounters: Detecting Communities at High-Risk of IUU Fishing

• In Event: Topics in Network Criminology

Abstract

Identifying distinct communities of actors repeatedly involved in suspicious at-sea transshipment of fish would enhance efforts to disrupt illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) commercial fishing. Starting with a set of seed vessels observed to operate in the U.N. FAO Area 81 during 2015-2021, we used a two-step sampling protocol to extract potential ship-to-ship transfer activity from a global set of estimated encounters detected by the automated vessel monitoring system (AIS) published by Global Fishing Watch. Applying a qualitative, context-specific application of subgroup detection, this study investigates a directed bipartite graph linking 613 fishing vessels to 30 refrigerated cargo vessels. We find that suspicious Area 81 activity is embedded within a dynamic network that extends beyond the focal region, wherein highly central carriers associated with open registries and observed to have operational deficiencies shadow national fleets. The observed between group linkages and variability in central positioning highlights the need to focus on carriers that embed dynamic regional activity into the larger fishing industry, providing a focus for monitoring and conservation efforts.

Authors

• Kierston Viramontes, California State University, San Bernardino

• Gisela Bichler, California State University, San Bernardino

• Gohar A. Petrossian, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

• Nerea Marteache, California State University, San Bernardino