A fishing boat crashed into a warship in the waters of Thailand

Fishermen in a boat collided with a navy vessel while trying to escape.

A Vietnamese vessel and nine other vessels were discovered illegally fishing in Thai waters on February 22. The fishermen had been fishing at night and then retreated south during the day to avoid arrest.

The Royal Thai Navy (RTN) sent patrol boats and aircraft to the area after receiving a request for reinforcements from the First Naval Region Command.

Dramatic footage of the chase after one of the fishing boats shows the RTN vessel HTMS Thepha chasing the illegal vessel. In a desperate attempt to escape, the Vietnamese vessel turned towards the navy vessel and crashed into its side.

Navy officers had to fire warning shots from an M16 rifle to force the Vietnamese crew to surrender. Four fishermen were arrested and will face trial. Their vessel was towed to Klang province.