Environmental activists rescued 40 crew from a sinking ship it suspected of conducting illegal fishing near the island of Sao Tope , off the Gabon coast . The Nigerian-flagged Thunder was being tracked by activists from the charity Sea Shepherd , who believed it was engaged in illegal fishing . The Thunder 's captain and crew manned life rafts late on Monday after the ship was scuttled . Scroll down for video . Rogue fishermen are believed to have scuttled this ship , Thunder from Lagos to cover up illegal fishing . Charity Sea Shepherd had been tracking the Thunder for the past 110 days off the west coast of Africa . The fishing vessel sank in perfect conditions , leading to suspicions that it had been deliberately scuttled . Sea Shepherd 's vessels Bob Barker and Sam Simon rescued the men from the ocean . The Thunder had been fishing in the waters between Sao Tome and Principe , off the west coast of Africa . Bob Barker 's captain Peter Hammarstedt said : 'It is an incredibly suspicious situation , to say the least . 'When my chief engineer boarded the Thunder in the hours leading up to the sinking , he was able to confirm that there were clear signs that the vessel was intentionally scuttled . 'Usually when a vessel is sinking , the captain will close all hatches so as to maintain buoyancy . However , on the Thunder , the reverse was done - doors and hatches were tied open and the fishhold was opened . ' Sea Shepherd said the crew were given food and water and were transferred to Sam Simon . Video recorded by the activist group showed the ship sinking just hours after it said Thunder issued a distress signal on Monday afternoon . The Thunder 's crew of 40 all managed to escape into life rafts before the vessel sunk to the ocean bottom . Members of Sea Shepherd launched rescue boats to rescue the members of crew from the ocean . Watertight doors on board the Thunder were dogged open increasing suspicion that the vessel was scuttled . Hammarstedt said Thunder 's captain , who was not named , complained about being rescued and 'started applauding and cheering ' when the vessel sank . He told the Sydney Morning Herald : 'We 've been chasing the Thunder for 110 days now , and I think they 're basically at the end of their fuel , and they would have had to make a port call . ' I think the captain of the Thunder made the decision that he preferred the physical evidence on board ... was better on the ocean bottom than going into port with him . ' Thunder , on a list of boats deemed to have engaged in illegal , unreported , or unregulated fishing activities by multi-national body the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources ( CCAMLR ) , is suspected of illegal fishing for Patagonian toothfish and other rare species in the Antarctic . Toothfish is sold as Chilean sea bass , which is popular in high-end restaurants . It sells primarily in the United States , Europe and Japan , although there is also a growing market in China . Sea Shepherd 's vessel Bob Barker , pictured , had been tracking The Thunder for more than 100 days .
The Thunder from Lagos was suspected of illegally fishing for Toothfish . Sea Shepherd had been tracking the Thunder for more than 100 days . The Thunder 's captain is suspected of scuttling the vessel in a cover-up . Watertight doors were dogged open to allow the vessel to sink faster .