Russian fishermen seize border guards and flee

The crew of a Russian fishing boat have seized five border guards inspecting their vessel and sped away towards Japan.

The crew of a Russian fishing boat have seized five border guards inspecting their vessel and sped away towards Japan.

The move has prompted the Russian coastguard to launch a high-speed chase off the Pacific Coast.

The Vorovsky border patrol boat stopped the Rekin trawler near the port of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky for an inspection, Russian television reports.

Five border guards mounted the fishing boat, and as soon as they stepped on the deck, the boat took off.

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The Vorovsky and other Russian coast guard vessels immediately set out in pursuit, Pavel Tarasenko, head of the Russian border guards' Pacific regional department.