Connecticut state law enforcement arrested two individuals in an overnight operation following reports of illegal nets in West Haven Harbor.
The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s State Environmental Conservation (EnCon) Police said it received multiple reports from boaters about the nets, which they claimed posed a safety hazard to vessels operating in the harbor. EnCon conducted an overnight operation to catch those responsible, ultimately arresting Meriden, Connecticut, U.S.A. residents Qudong Chen and Yuqing Lin. As part of the operation, all nets were removed from the water.
The pair were charged with commercial fishing without a license, fishing for summer flounder without an endorsement, possession of 15 undersize summer flounder, the illegal harvest of 99 easter oysters, shellfishing after sunset, and possession of 51 undersize blue crabs.
Fish and shellfish seized during the arrest were donated to a Killingworth, Connecticut-based bird rehabilitation center A Place Called Hope where they will be used as feed.
“We often hear the sentiment that fish and game crimes are ‘victimless’ and therefore less serious,” EnCon Police said in a Facebook post. “However, size limits and harvest hours exist so these species can reach reproductive age, and so the commercial fishermen who follow the law are not undercut by those who do not.”
