Tag Archives: noaa ole
Charges filed against vessel operator for illegal trawling near Kodiak, Alaska
The State of Alaska filed criminal misdemeanor charges May 12 against a vessel operator for operating non-pelagic trawl gear within the Kodiak, Alaska, ground fish registration area. The trawl gear used in the area had attached to it chafing gear and chain rib lines suitable for fishing in contact with the seabed, all devices not authorized for legal pelagic trawl gear. A multi-agency law enforcement team embarked aboard Coast Guard Cutter Naushon boarded the trawler near Kodiak, Alaska, March 16, and issued several significant fisheries violations. “In response to the boarding, NOAA opened an investigation into the vessel for fishing in federal waters closed to non-pelagic trawl gear around Kodiak,” said Phillip Null, supervisory enforcement officer, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Law Enforcement (NOAA OLE). >click to read< 15:27
Busted! – Coast Guard, NOAA seize illegally caught fish near Homer, Alaska
A Coast Guard law enforcement boarding team seized illegally caught fish near Homer, Alaska, Wednesday. The Naushon crew seized the catch and escorted the vessel to Homer where a NOAA OLE representative took possession of the catch upon arrival at the pier. A Coast Guard Cutter Naushon boarding team discovered halibut aboard a commercial IFQ halibut vessel that was not documented in the vessel’s logbook. Additionally, the halibut was filleted to where the size and number of fish could not be determined. >click to continue< 15:49
Rafael’s own fishery complaints opened door to his downfall. Coast Guard report details extensive fishing violations
In January 2015, angered by cuts to his portion of federal groundfish disaster relief, Rafael publicly railed against the process and said he planned to sell his more than 40 vessels and the approximately 60 federal fishing permits attached to them. And with that, five federal law enforcement agencies saw their opening.,,, New Hampshire fisherman David Goethel, in the question-and-answer segment, complained that none of the fish dealers who participated in the scheme — particularly Rafael’s infamous New York dealer — were indicted. >click to read< 06:14
Coast Guard report details extensive fishing violations – “I can’t tell you how angry my fishing community is over this,” Marshfield fisherman Ed Barrett said. Barrett felt NOAA, the New England council and fishermen knew that Rafael was fishing illegally. Rafael had a long history of fishing violations and bragged openly about how he could beat the system, and yet Audyatis said the investigation that eventually caught him didn’t start until 2015. >click to read<
Halibut poachers sentenced to jail time
Robert and David Gudgell, former fishing boat operators for Pacific Salmon Charters, will need to update their resumes. At a sentencing hearing on Wednesday in South District Court, Judge Nancy McAllister delivered a stinging rebuke to the brothers, who were recently convicted of numerous halibut-poaching charges. “I really hope your selfish actions do not taint the reputation of the other fishermen in this area,” McAllister said before sentencing the Gudgells to jail time, hefty fees, probation and a one-year ban on being on boats. >Click to read<10:01
NOAA law enforcement researches sexual harassment, assault among fishery observers
Women are harassed and fear for their safety much more than men when they work as fishery observers. That’s according to a report that NOAA’s office of law enforcement officials presented about sexual harassment of observers to a meeting of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council in Kodiak this past week. The report shared preliminary data from an ongoing survey and although the sample size is small, the survey reveals stark differences between the experiences of female and male observers. >click to read<09:07
Federal prosecutors charge Casey’s Seafood owner in blue crab case
The president of a local seafood company was charged in Newport News federal court Friday with falsely labeling imported crab meat from foreign waters, passing it off as being more expensive Atlantic blue crab. James R. Casey, 74, of Poquoson, who owns Casey’s Seafood in Newport News, is accused of directing his employees to take crab from Asia and South America, blend it with true Atlantic blue crab, and put “Product of the USA” labels on the packages. >click here to read<12:57
Local charter suspected of ‘high-grading’ prized halibut
Pacific Salmon Charters got an unexpected publicity boost earlier this month, when the crew of the Pacific Dream rescued passengers from a sunken boat. Last week, the company received not-so-welcome attention from state and federal game wardens. On Thursday, July 13, officers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife served a search warrant at the Pacific Salmon office at the Port of Ilwaco. According to the warrant, Pacific Salmon crews are suspected of habitually “high-grading,” or catching more than the legal limit of fish, and keeping only the most desirable specimens. Investigators say they have evidence that Pacific Salmon Charters crews high-graded on at least two trips during the short spring halibut season. click here to read the story 13:06
NOAA OLE closes a successful investigation after numerous Observers filed complaints against an Alaskan-based vessel
“This was a large, time consuming investigation involving many violations, victims, and witnesses,” said Kevin Heck, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of OLE’s Alaska Division. NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement began receiving complaints filed by Observers1 about the Aleutian Sable, owned by Arctic Sablefish, LLC, in 2013. A case file was opened and officers began communicating with one of the vessel’s operators, Jay Hebert, and closely monitoring the vessel for compliance purposes. Complaints and violations continued to pile up through October 2014. Once the investigation was complete, OLE investigators forwarded the case package to NOAA’s Office of General Counsel for prosecution. On March 8, 2016, a Notice of Violation and Assessment of Administrative Penalty (NOVA) was issued to the owner and operator of the F/V Aleutian Sable. The NOVA charged the following eight counts of violations under the Magnuson‐Stevens Act Read the rest here 09:28
Massachusetts Environmental Police mum on identity of accused lobsterman
The Massachusetts Environmental Police said Wednesday it is not naming the lobsterman for whom it is seeking a criminal summons for allegedly unloading 183 illegal lobsters last Tuesday at a local lobster wholesaler. Major Patrick Moran of the Environmental Police said it is the department’s policy not to divulge the name of the lobsterman or the vessel until its officers have the opportunity to go before the clerk magistrate at Gloucester District Court. “That is our policy and I don’t see it changing,” Moran said. “We still have to protect people who may be innocent.” Moran did confirm the lobsters were landed at Captain Joe & Sons Wholesale Lobster Co. in East Gloucester, but said the wholesale lobster dealer does not share any culpability in the alleged massive violations that included 183 illegal lobsters — 144 undersized, 37 v-notched and two egg-bearing — from the 550 lobsters the unidentified vessel landed. “We are not holding the wholesaler responsible, the reason being they hadn’t taken the lobsters into their possession,” Moran said. “There already was a federal officer on the scene and the vessel was gone by the time they started inspecting the lobsters.” Read the story here 08:02
Video shows man attacking Hawaiian monk seal, culture expert mentions commercial fishermen?
One of Kauai’s most popular Hawaiian monk seals was attacked on Tuesday night at Salt Pond Beach Park, and a video recording of the scuffle is circulating on social media. The footage shows an unidentified man enter the water at Salt Pond at sunset and attack RK30, a full-grown female monk seal, in what appears to be an attempt to chase the her from her resting place on the beach. Kumu Sabra Kauka, who teaches Hawaiian culture through education around the island, said she was disturbed when she saw the video. “That kind of behavior is uncalled for and is inexcusable,” she said. “Being high or drunk is no excuse. She said sometimes this kind of aggression toward the Hawaiian Monk Seals stems from the commercial fishing community and the mindset that the seals are stealing the fish from their nets. Read the article here Watch the video here 13:03
NOAA OLE Agents probe possible sea lion shootings in Astoria
The Sea Lion Defense Brigade discovered bullet casings and bleeding sea lions at the East End Mooring Basin in Astoria. We can tell you that NOAA office of law enforcement has received a complaint, and we are investigating the possible shooting of sea lions at the East End Mooring Basin,” said Sean Stanley, a special agent with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Stanley wouldn’t comment further, citing the ongoing case. Read the rest here 17:1370 subpoenas issued ‘throughout New York’ in federal probe of fisheries program
The federal government has issued 70 grand-jury subpoenas as part of two-year investigation into a fishing auction program widely criticized as a “license to steal.”,, A NOAA Fisheries spokesman didn’t return a call seeking further comment, and Logan couldn’t be reached. Federal regulators “knew there was a problem when they set the [fluke] quota in place. They never addressed it,” said Bonnie Brady, executive director of the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association,, Read more here 16:19
NOAA cop video draws fire in D.C.
NOAA has released a video and an essay on the Office of Law Enforcement website touting its value to the nation and the fishing industry by ensuring “a level playing field” — even as the agency continued to suppress a 
$500,000 addendum to a special judicial master’s report on abuses of the badge carried out against commercial fishermen in Gloucester and across the Northeast.
WHERE”S THAT F-ING REPORT!!!
This is the feel good video. http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/stories/2012/11/11_16_2012enforcement_video.html
http://www.gloucestertimes.com/topstories/x2120604171/NOAA-cop-video-draws-fire-in-D-C
An up to date website! What are these people getting paid? http://www.noaa.gov/lawenforcementupdates/
