If you are thinking about illegally taking fish, authorities might be watching. Photo: California Department of Fish and Wildlife
California Department of Fish and Wildlife officers caught two commercial fishermen operating in a marine protected area off San Diego County. The officers confiscated dozens of fish and arrested the subjects for illegally fishing in the Swamis State Marine Conservation Area.
According to the department’s statement, they had been eyeing these fishermen for days, as they were believed to be repeat offenders with previous violations on their rap sheets. So as the pair motored offshore to take more fish from the conservation area, authorities were watching their every move with an aircraft high above.
The “suspects were actively fishing and retaining fish within the Marine Protected Area,” the statement reads. “Officers continued surveillance and ultimately contacted the vessel when it returned to port.”
When officers boarded the vessel at the port, they found coolers with rockfish, yellowtail, and white seabass. They arrested, cited, and released the fishermen on misdemeanor charges. More than 50 fish in total were confiscated and sold to a licensed fish seller. The proceeds of the sale will be held until the case is settled in court.
If the fishermen are found guilty, they can face minimum fines of $5,000 each, as per state laws prohibiting commercial fishing from within a marine protected area.
The Swami State Marine Conservation Area, which encompasses 13 square miles of ocean from Encinitas to San Elijo Lagoon, allows fishing from shore by hook-and-line. It also permits spearfishing for an array of fish species on a pre-approved list. Fishing off a boat, however, as the suspects were caught doing, is prohibited.
Earlier this summer, authorities in San Diego County also caught an alleged poacher taking lobsters out of season in La Jolla.
