Seoul: South Korean coast guard officials are investigating the deaths of three Chinese fishermen whose boat caught fire after an altercation with the coast guard over illegal fishing.
Patrols had stopped the unlicensed fishing boat with 17 crew members on board on Thursday on suspicion of poaching in waters 70 kilometres from an island off South Korea's south-western coast, a statement from the coast guard said.
The statement said the crew initially resisted and fled before South Korean officers managed to board the boat.
When the crew members locked themselves in a steering cabin to resist an attempt to search the vessel and question them, the statement said coast guard officers threw flashbang grenades into the cabin. The grenades were non-lethal devices designed to produce a blinding flash of light and loud sound.
The boat soon caught fire. Although the officers rescued 14 fishermen, they later found the other three dead, apparently from inhaling toxic fumes from the fire. The coast guard said autopsies were planned to determine the cause of their deaths. It was also investigating what had caused the fire.
Officials in South Korea have long complained about the growing numbers of Chinese boats they say are venturing further from their increasingly barren home waters to poach near South Korea.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry said China had asked for consultations on the incident and for assistance to the survivors and families of those killed.
"We have asked the South Korean side for an urgent dialogue on this matter, and we have urged a fair and thorough investigation to be conducted," Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said.
South Korea's Foreign Ministry expressed regret over the deaths, but noted the Chinese boat was fishing illegally and had tried to flee to avoid an inspection.
In 2014, a Chinese captain died from a bullet wound during a clash between South Korean coast guard officials cracking down on Chinese ships suspected of poaching and Chinese crewmen resisted them with homemade weapons.
In 2012, a Chinese fisherman was killed by a rubber bullet fired by a South Korean officer. A year earlier, a South Korean officer was stabbed to death by a Chinese fisherman.
New York Times, AP