PHILIPSBURG- Earlier this month the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard, Nature Foundation Sint Maarten, and Customs seized an estimated 66,000 endangered American eels (Anguilla rostrata) worth over USD 30,000 from a vessel arriving from the Dominican Republic. 

The operation, coordinated with Dominican fisheries’ authority CODOPESCA, revealed fraudulent documents and identified the shipment as an illegal smuggling operation.

The eels, kept alive with the help of CODOPESCA specialists and Nature Foundation staff, were returned to the Dominican Republic on December 9 for monitored release into their natural habitat.

Ilicit market

While the vessel’s crew faced no further prosecution, officials warned that Sint Maarten’s lax wildlife trade regulations make it a hotspot for trafficking. The poaching and illegal sale of American eels, driven by East Asian demand, has led to their endangered status and an illicit market across the Caribbean.