A Malaysian court today ordered 11 Vietnamese fishermen to serve jail sentences of one to two months after they failed to settle a fine for illegal fishing.

Magistrate Zulkifli Abdullah sentenced the skipper of the boat to pay a RM100,000 (US$26,315) fine or serve two months jail while the 10 crewmen were fined RM10,000 each or ordered to serve one month in jail.

Deportion ordered

All 11 failed to pay their fines, however.

The court ordered their deportation after completion of their jail terms.

Earlier, the skipper, identified only as Chai, 44, admitted encroaching into Malaysia's eastern Sarawak state on Borneo Island on October 15, Bernama news agency said. - AFP