Chinese vessels illegally fishing near the inter-Korean maritime border have fled to North Korean waters to avoid patrols during crab season, according to the ROK coast guard, a development that suggests Pyongyang continues to sell fishing rights in violation of U.N. sanctions.

A coast guard official told NK News that a daily average of 190 Chinese civilian vessels appeared illegally near the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the Yellow Sea between September and October, up 30 to 40 ships from the same period last year.

Some of those vessels crossed into North Korean waters to evade South Korean enforcement, according