Daily Archives: May 9, 2016
Owner of Commercial Fishing Business and Local Sherrif’s Deputy Indicted in Scheme to Falsify Fishing Records
BOSTON – The owner of one of the largest commercial fishing businesses in the United States and a Bristol County Sheriff’s Deputy were charged in connection with a long-running scheme involving submitting falsified records to the federal government to evade federal fishing quotas and then smuggling the profits to Portugal. The federal indictment charging the two men was unsealed today after the arrest of the Sheriff’s Deputy. Carlos Rafael, 64, of Dartmouth, the owner of Carlos Seafood, Inc., was indicted on one count of conspiring to falsify reports submitted to the federal government, 25 counts of submitting falsified records and one count of bulk cash smuggling. Rafael was previously arrested on a criminal complaint filed in February 2016. Antonio Freitas, 46, of Taunton, a Sheriff’s Deputy with the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office, was indicted on one count of bulk cash smuggling and one count of structuring the export of U.S. currency. Freitas was arrested this morning and will appear today in U.S. District Court in Worcester. The charges arose out of an undercover investigation in which federal agents posed as organized crime figures interested in buying Carlos Seaford. Read the rest here 18:09
California Marine Life Protection Act: The ultimate bait and switch
There is no question that the passage of the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) has been the most controversial environmental issue California’s angling community has ever faced. It signaled the state’s shift from a shared philosophy of conserving California’s natural resources to outright protectionism, with little regard to the interests of outdoor recreation, tourism and all of their economic benefits. As the MLPA established the framework for Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), the state promised California anglers that areas designated as off-limits to commercial and recreational fishing may one day be open to fishing. In fact, they were very specific in their promises. Scientific assessments would be conducted every five years, and as fish populations were assessed as sustainably viable, the restrictions would be lifted. (But would they be?) Read the rest here 16:56
The ‘Codfather’ Carlos Rafael indicted on 27 counts for lying about fish catches and smuggling cash
Local fishing magnate Carlos Rafael has been indicted by federal prosecutors for lying about fish catches and smuggling cash to Portugal through Logan airport in Boston, in a multi-year scheme involving hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to records filed last week and unsealed Monday. The indictment lists 27 counts against Rafael, for charges including conspiracy, false entries and bulk cash smuggling. Rafael is alleged to have falsely reported the species of more than 815,000 pounds of fish to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) between 2012 and January of this year, according to the Office of U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz. Bristol County Sheriff’s Office deputy Antonio M. Freitas, a Taunton resident, also is named in the indictment. Freitas is charged with two counts, one for bulk cash smuggling and one for international structuring. “Freitas assisted Rafael with smuggling cash through the airport,” the U.S. Attorney’s documents state, referring to Logan International. Read the rest here 13:43
Long Island lobstermen oppose closures, question how regulators are making their decisions.
Long Island lobstermen, already straining under the weight of a seasonal closure of the Long Island Sound and sharply reduced lobster populations, face the potential for more closures as federal regulators work to rebuild a depleted stock. At a meeting of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission last week, the American Lobster Management Board agreed to review a series of new measures to address what they called the continuing decline in the Southern New England lobster fishery, which includes the . The fishery has been affected by environmental factors and fishing activity, the board said. Montauk lobsterman Al Schaffer said he and others saw a resurgence in the areas they fish around the Long Island Sound last year, though fishing is down thus far this spring. “There’s zero science,” he said, adding he strongly opposes any attempt to further restrict fishing. Read the story here 11:10
Electronic tags implanted in juvenile salmon, tracking them from birthplace to ocean
Using tags surgically implanted into thousands of juvenile salmon, UBC researchers have discovered that many fish die within the first few days of migration from their birthplace to the ocean. “We knew that on average 10 to 40 million smolts leave Chilko Lake every year and only about 1.5 million return as adults two years later,” said Nathan Furey, researcher and a PhD candidate in the faculty of forestry. “It’s always been a mystery about what happens in between.” More than 2,000 salmon were tracked over four years and researchers found that survival was poor in the clear and slow-moving Chilko River, where predators were feeding intensely on the smolts. Once in the murky and fast-flowing Fraser River, the salmon travelled day and night, covering up to 220 km per day, and experienced nearly 100 per cent survival. The researchers believe that in these waters, predators have difficulty finding and getting to the fish. Video, read the rest here 10:58
The countdown is on for fresh Copper River salmon.
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game has announced the first opening of the Copper River salmon fishing season. The opener is scheduled for 12 hours beginning at 7:00 am and closing at 7:00 pm on Monday, May 16, 2016. As with all Alaska fisheries, the name of the game is sustainability. Fishery managers must be confident that the run is on track to meet escapement goals (the number of salmon that must make it to the spawning grounds to ensure long-term health of the run) before they provide fishing opportunity. Commercial salmon fishermen have fished Copper River salmon for well over a century, which provides fishery managers a wealth of historical data. Throughout the years, an opening date near May 15 has provided for sustainable yield. Read the rest here 10:00
Former fishermen sue Japanese Government for hiding Bikini atoll H-bomb fallout records
A group of former fishermen Monday filed an unprecedented lawsuit seeking compensation from the government for failing to disclose, for decades, records of their exposure to radiation from U.S. hydrogen bomb tests in the Pacific Ocean in 1954. A total of 45 people, mostly from Kochi Prefecture and including families of deceased fishermen, are seeking ¥2 million each, according to the lawsuit filed at the Kochi District Court. It is the first time a compensation lawsuit has been filed against the state in connection with the hydrogen bomb tests conducted on Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands. The tests began with an explosion code-named Castle Bravo on March 1, 1954, a lawyer for the plaintiffs said. Read the story here Related story 08:28
Two fishermen stayed afloat for three days thanks to an Igloo cooler
Who doesn’t love coolers? They’re great for picnics, barbecues and every time you have a date with nature. But you’d never expect a cooler to save your life. After a shipwreck last week, two boaters stayed afloat for three days in the waters of the Galveston Bay area, thanks to an Igloo cooler they carried with them. “A wave hit us from the side, the boat flipped over and we were in the water,” recalls Raymond Jacik. The fishermen didn’t have their emergency equipment with them. But something unpredicted happened. Video, read the rest here 07:46
