1. TYPES AND NUMBER OF CASES

Type	Total by Region
	Region 1	Region 2	Region 3
A. Shellfish	8	13	1
B. Finfish	7	5	0
C. Crustacea	5	0	6
D. Striped Bass	0	2	0
E. Wetlands Protection	37	0	0
F. Navigation Law	2	0	0

 

2. SIGNIFICANT CASE HIGHLIGHTS

REGION ONE: Commercial Marine Resource Enforcement

Marine enforcement continues to be a priority for patrol in the Western Zone. As part of this commitment, members of the zone participated in a joint, multi-day uncertified detail in Jamaica Bay with Region 2 officers.

On 12 December 1998, Officers Ferraro and Arp, as a result of a late December zone enforcement priority involving commercial fish retailers, discovered a fish shop selling striped bass fillets without retaining a tagged carcass. The owner of the shop stated that his son owned a nearby shop. A subsequent check of that store found it to be in violation for the same offense. Father and son were issued tickets for the bass and the father for operating without the appropriate permits.

Officer Ferraro received a complaint from the USCG on 15 December 1998 about a fishing vessel they were boarding. Officer Ferraro met the vessel dockside and found untagged and mutilated striped bass. He summonsed the captain for those offenses.

Officer Levanway assisted the Huntington Bay Constables on 29 December 1998 in apprehending a pair of clam diggers working in uncertified waters of Northport Bay. Officer Levanway spotted the diggers and identified the violators from shore while the bay constables approached the targeted vessels by boat.

In the Central Zone on 28 December 1998, ECOs Bengel and Ruckert, while on routine boat patrol, observed a clammer digging clams in Patchogue Bay. This subject has a revoked permit and has been seen on the bay previously, eluding apprehension by dumping his clams and rakes overboard. This time, however, the officers observed his activity and issued him ECATs for dumping (13-0344) and taking shellfish while ones license is revoked, both misdemeanors.

On 31 December 1998, ECOs Lapinski, Ruckert and Bengel issued ECATs to a Bayport man for possessing two containers of shellfish, with 27 percent and 36 percent seed clams, respectively; misdemeanors.

On 10 December 1998, ECOs Donk and Vinski checked a dragger at Shinnecock. As the officers approached, the captain of the dragger tried to hide a box of fish. The officers questioned him and found he was in possession of 140 pounds of fluke during that species’ closed season. ECATs were issued.

In the Eastern Zone, as part of an ongoing investigation with BECI, ECO Billotto issued two misdemeanor ECATs this month to the captain of a fishing vessel. This stems from a case dating to the summer of 1997, when this individual and a number of Montauk fishermen landed illegal numbers of fluke. The captain will be arraigned on 20 January 1999, at East Hampton Justice Court.

REGION TWO

On 21 January 1998, a large detail was conducted at the Fulton Fish Market. Approximately 24 Great Lakes Fisheries Council (GLFC) members were transported from Long Island to New York City to tour the landmark fish market. Division of Enforcement personnel from Central Office, Marine Revocations, Regions 7 and 2 were present at the detail. Other agencies participating in the detail were the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection Conservation officers, the National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the NYPD. While the general purpose of the detail was to familiarize the GLFC members with the workings of the market, a full blown enforcement action was undertaken simultaneously. Nine cases were made with several containing multiple counts. The enforcement actions were very worthwhile and served to enhance the experience of the observers. Officers seized an entire pallet of undersized weakfish (weighing approximately 1,500 lbs.) from one seafood dealer. Due to the current market value of the product, the dealer faces a $5,000.00 fine and/or up to one year of jail time for the misdemeanor charges pursuant to the illegal commercialization penalty sections of the Environmental Conservation Law. Another case involved the seizure from one wholesaler of sixteen bags of undersized hard clams with in excess of three percent per container. Some of the containers contained as much as 85% seed clams! This wholesaler was also found to be in possession of three crates of undersized weakfish. He also faces identical misdemeanor charges noted above due to the value of the contraband. Several other seed, tagging, and permit violation cases were made throughout the market. All other agencies involved were of great assistance and contributed to the success of the operation. City Harvest, a non-profit organization was called to the scene to pick up perishable items seized for distribution to those in need.

REGION THREE

Acting on a complaint involving the taking of short lobsters, ECOs Cook and Brickwood and Lieutenant Nash set up an extended surveillance along the shoreline of Westchester County. The informant stated the owner of the target vessel had secretly installed a false sink in the forward cabin of his 42-foot lobster boat to conceal and store sub-legal size lobsters. Additionally, the informant believed the vessel was lobstering in adjacent Connecticut waters without a Connecticut license. Following a meeting with Connecticut DEP Police, a surveillance was initiated by both agencies simultaneously utilizing a shared radio frequency for communication.

On 28 January 1999, Lieutenant Nash and ECO Cook established a visual on the lobster boat by means of a land-based spotting scope. Zooming in from approximately 1 _ miles out, they noticed no lobsters were being returned to the water after pulling numerous trawls. As "shorts" are predominately being caught this winter, a red flag immediately went up. As the boat returned to its berth in the Byram River in Port Chester, New York, the officers conducted a thorough search, finding four 50 lb. bags containing 208 short lobsters and one female lobster in spawn, with eggs attached, all conveniently stowed underneath the false sink. Both permittees were arrested and charged with commercialization of wildlife, missing the felony threshold by approximately 50 pounds.

One week later the same lobster boat stumbled again. The lobstermen were caught in the act of hauling lobster gear in Connecticut waters without a license. They were observed by Connecticut DEP Police and ECOs Cook and Brickwood from the same hidden vantage point on land. They were subsequently charged by Connecticut with the 30+ traps seized as evidence. In order to establish that the harvested lobsters were from Connecticut, numerous lobsters were previously marked with notches and placed in the illegal traps. One week later upon approaching the vessel, several lobsters were found with the same distinguishing mark on the tail.