Tag Archives: wire fraud and falsifying federal records

Fisherman Charles Wertz, Jr. pled guilty in federal district court to one count of wire fraud and two counts of falsifying federal records

An investigation initiated in July 2010 by NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement (OLE) into Research Set-Aside (RSA) program violations culminated in a guilty plea on August 15, 2013, by an East Meadow, NY, fisherman and his fish dealer company to wire fraud and falsifying federal records. In all, OLE agents determined that Wertz filed 137 false federal dealer reports and 70 false fishing logs while C&C Ocean Fishery aided and abetted in the submission of the reports. the defendants have agreed to pay between $480,000 and $516,000 in combined fines and forfeitures and will undergo multiple sentence conditions, including relinquishment of federal fishing permits, a ban on participation in the RSA program, and shutting down C&C Ocean Fishery.  [email protected]  10:59