Lupe: some Justice at last!

Well well.

Check this out.

Rumor has it that the vessel was carrying Amos along with a complement of his extra lucrative clients - and if so and if the past is any indication, it obviously raises the issue of illegal out-of-cage dives, and illegal dives with the vessel's submarine. 

Rumor also has it that the so-called bogus citizen science expedition was fronted by Mauricio who continues to show extraordinary bad judgement and may now find himself permanently stripped of his research permit.

Anyway.

Good to see that the authorities have finally intervened and put an end to the pathetic shenanigans. Far from being a legit research vessel like they claim, the M/Y Sharkwater has been engaging in illegal tourism by publicly offering trips to known diving destinations like Guadalupe, Malpelo and Cocos, and then barging in by pretending that its paying passengers are "donors" and "citizen scientists" and not tourists, this in order to brazenly circumvent the relevant proper licensing processes. In that, notorious Fins Attached supremo Alex Antoniou continues in the tradition of Marie Levine's travel agency, the infamous fake Shark Research Institute to which he and Amos, and such luminaries as Ritter and Collier are, or used to be affiliated, or whatever. I can't believe I'm saying this: but this shit makes Fisher and OCEARCH who at least try to get the permits look like pillars of propriety!
Needless to say that the local operators who have spent millions developing, promoting and nurturing those sites are not amused.

So here's to this being the beginning of the end of that shit.

Let's hope that the authorities in Cocos, Malpelo and Socorro have been alerted and will do what needs doing; let's hope that group leaders and dive tourists alike stop booking and promoting that shameless travesty; let's hope that whoever is silently financing the vessel stops doing so - or even better, transfers it to a legit operator, be it in tourism or in real scientific research.
And finally, let's also hope that Mauricio will finally start using his brain, disassociate himself from this fraud, resign as expedition leader and generally speaking, stop enabling all those frauds and charlatans who pretend to be his friends in order to gain access to Guadalupe. 

And Arauz?

I'm not hopeful alas.
Witnessing how he is stabbing in the back the very Undersea Hunter Group and Okeanos Aggressor who have assisted him for decades, points to some deep-seated ethical rot. But karma has a way of quietly meting out justice, so here's to that.

And anyway, as always we shall see.

Fingers are crossed!