“Whale Wars” star and activist Paul Watson arrested in Greenland

His foundation – the Captain Paul Watson Foundation – released a video explaining when they landed in Nuuk, Greenland, to refuel for their journey through the Northwest Passage and stop the Japanese whaling ship Kangei Maru.

However, the foundation stated that the Danish federal police boarded and arrested Watson immediately after the ship docked.

A video released by the foundation shows police officers leading Watson – with long white hair and a thick beard – from the ship to a police vehicle and then driving away.

The Associated Press, citing a police statement, confirmed that Watson had been arrested and that a district court would decide the extradition issue.

In the clip, one of the Danish police officers can be heard telling the crew that they have arrested Paul on the basis of an international arrest warrant from Japan… and the foundation believes that the longer he stays in Greenland, the more likely he is to be extradited to Tokyo.

For those who don’t know, Watson has been an opponent of the whaling industry for years – he has been damaging and sinking ships all over the world since founding the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society in the late 1970s. He is also a founding member of Greenpeace.

His story – and the stories of other prominent anti-whaling activists – were chronicled in the 2008-2015 series “Whale Wars,” in which captains of various Sea Shepherd ships hunted down whalers by any means necessary.

Watson’s foundation is asking for money to get him out of custody in Greenland before he is extradited to Japan.