Tag Archives: Virginia Marine Police

Eastern Shore fisherman pleads guilty to overharvesting, trafficking of striped bass

A commercial fisherman from the Eastern Shore pleaded guilty Monday to violating a federal law by selling striped bass he caught in Virginia waterways in excess of his quota over the course of three years. Keith James Martin, 52, of Saxis, was legally allowed to harvest 4,010 pounds of striped bass per year from 2018 to 2020 under Virginia code, according to a news release from the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Virginia. However, in 2018, Martin sold more than 6,700 pounds of striped bass to a Maryland seafood business and more than 4,300 pounds to the same business in 2019, according to the statement of facts filed with the plea agreement. >click to read< 08:33

Officer honored after April rescue effort off Tangier Island

The U.S. Coast Guard has honored a Virginia Marine Police officer for his “vital assistance” in the investigation of the sinking of a commercial fishing vessel in April which resulted in the death of a Tangier Island waterman and the rescue of his son. Coast Guard Capt. Richard J. Wester, captain of the Port of Hampton Roads, presented Master Officer Richard W. Pruitt with the Coast Guard Sector Hampton Road’s “Command Coin” in a ceremony during the Virginia Marine Resources Commission monthly board meeting. On April 24 at about 2:30 p.m., a distress signal was sent out by the late commercial waterman Edward Charnock, 70, and his son, Jason Charnock, 39, that their boat, the Henrietta C, was sinking, Coast Guard officials said. click here to read the story 13:08

1 dead, 1 missing in fishing tragedy in Gloucester, Va

One person is dead and one is missing following a commercial fishing and boating accident in the Swash Channel, Saturday morning. Virginia Marine Police were called at 11:15 a.m. by a family member who said the two fisherman did not return home. The two men were working a gill net in the Swash Channel near the Guinea Marshes in Gloucester. Around 1 p.m. marine police spotted a sunken vessel in the Swash Channel. The body of Phillip Brown, 47, was found nearby tangled in a gill net. Crews are still searching for the other fisherman, 30-year-old Anthony West, and will continue until dark. Read the rest here 20:08

Virginia Marine Resources Commission hits fisherman with new maximum punishment

Virginia Marine Resources CommissionLast year, state lawmakers answered a plea from Virginia’s commercial fishing industry to toughen the penalties for watermen who repeatedly break the law. On Tuesday, the Virginia Marine Resources Commission brought down that bigger hammer for the first time – yanking the licenses of a Hampton fisherman for five years and slapping him with a $10,000 civil penalty. It took the commission’s law enforcement staff 50 pages to document David A. Turner’s history of fisheries violations – nearly two dozen in state courts since 2001, including 10 this year. Among the latest were convictions for harvesting oysters from creeks that had been condemned because of pollution. An undercover sting by Virginia Marine Police led to those charges. “I haven’t seen anything this bad,” Marine Resources Commission chief John Bull told fellow commissioners after listening to a police officer’s rundown. It was a “laundry list … of some of the most serious oyster violations that I can imagine.” Read the story here 21:35

“Oyster thieves are on notice,” poachers will soon face stiffer penalties in Virginia

VMRC commissioner John Bull said in a statement Tuesday. “This new law escalates the potential punishments for egregious violations of our tidal natural resources.” “The vast majority of commercial watermen are honest and law-abiding,” Lauderman said. “But a relatively small number of thieves continue to cause a serious problem that is not diminishing.” VMRC regulates fisheries in the state and also oversees the Marine Police. Read the rest here  19:28

Virginia Marine Police arrest two accused of poaching thousands of protected fish

Marine police have had numerous complaints about poaching in the southern branch of the Elizabeth River over the last two weeks, according to Marine Police Officer Bill Thompson. Marine police had found many untended, illegal and hidden nets that had trapped and killed between 4,000 and 5,000 pounds of protected fish species in that waterway recently. Both Yuan Li of Chesapeake and Bi Chen of Norfolk have been charged with several Class 1 misdemeanors and there are several felony charges still pending,,, Video, Read the rest here 08:10

“We mean business.” Virginia Marine Police target poachers as oyster season opens

NEWPORT NEWS – Oyster season opens Oct. 1, and the Virginia Marine Police will combat oyster theft by air, land and sea in an intensive effort to end poaching. “We mean business. We will vigorously pursue anyone who violates the oyster regulations, and we will prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law,” said Virginia Marine Police Chief Rick Lauderman. “Stealing oysters from the public oyster grounds, private leased grounds or from oyster sanctuaries in particular will not be tolerated. Oyster poaching in Virginia will stop.” more@vagazette 17:18

Lusby man sentenced for trafficking illegally harvested striped bass

somdnews.com – A former Stoney’s Kingfishers Charters fishing boat captain was sentenced Thursday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia for allegedly illegally harvesting and selling striped bass, in violation of the Lacey Act. continued

Virginia Marine Police issue 500 citations for oyster poaching

Newport News, Va. – An ongoing Virginia Marine Police operation to protect a resurgent oyster population has resulted in 500 citations issued to commercial watermen over the past two years for violating oyster catch restrictions. “Oyster poaching now borders on an epidemic,” said Marine Resources Commissioner Jack Travelstead. Read more