The Nature Protection Service (SEPRONA) of the Civil Guard of the Las Palmas Command has arrested two people for their alleged involvement in a crime against fauna, after the placement of an illegal fishing net on the coast of Punta Mujeres, in the municipality of Haría, which resulted in the capture of three specimens of angel shark (Squatina squatina), a species listed as “in danger of extinction” since 2019.
The operation took place as part of a joint operation in which the Canary Islands Government's Fisheries Inspection Service, personnel from the La Graciosa Marine Reserve and the Northern Islets of Lanzarote—under the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA)—and members of the Lanzarote Security and Emergency Consortium (Firefighters) participated
The intervention began after a citizen's alert about the presence of a fishing gear apparently abandoned near the Punta Mujeres pier. Given the possibility that it was a so-called "ghost net," SEPRONA agents moved to the area, where they located a trammel net about 80 meters long placed in an area of high environmental value.
During the inspection, it was found that the net had trapped three angel sharks, two of which were already dead. The sea conditions and the complexity of the location made it necessary for firefighters and specialized personnel to intervene to safely remove the fishing gear and recover the animals.
Following the events, SEPRONA opened an investigation to clarify who was responsible for setting up the gillnet, which concluded with the identification and arrest of two men as alleged perpetrators of a crime against fauna, classified under Article 334.1 of the Penal Code, for the capture of a protected species.
The angel shark is a species native to the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean whose population has suffered a sharp decline in recent decades, mainly as a consequence of accidental fishing and habitat degradation. For this reason, its conservation is considered a priority both nationally and internationally.
The Civil Guard has emphasized that actions like this reinforce the commitment of public administrations to environmental protection, the conservation of marine biodiversity, and the sustainability of fishing resources, further underscoring the importance of citizen collaboration in detecting and curbing these types of illegal practices
The La Graciosa Marine Reserve and the Northern Islets of Lanzarote, created in 1995, covers an area of 70,700 hectares and is one of the most important protected marine areas in the Canary Islands. Its rocky bottoms, caves, tunnels, and extensive seagrass meadows are home to a great diversity of species, many of them of fishing interest and others emblematic of well-preserved ecosystems.