A commercial Dungeness crab harvester from Alaska has pled guilty to stealing a rival fishers’ gear in a deal that will see him serve jail time, forfeit his fishing vessel, and pay restitution to the fisher he wronged.
According to the Alaska Department of Public Safety, Ketchikan, Alaska-based resident David Alan Vest was caught stealing the gear in 2024.
During a stakeout, Alaska Wildlife Troopers observed Vest pull out another commercial fisher’s Dungeness crab gear onto his own boat, cut off the line and buoys, and replace them with his own line and buoys. An officer affidavit at the time stated that troopers had received multiple complaints that Vest was interfering with traps before conducting the stakeout.
Vest was charged with both interference with commercial fishing gear – a misdemeanor – and theft in the second degree. He pled guilty to the two charges in August 2025.
According to law enforcement, Vest will serve one year in jail, be on probation for the following three years, and pay USD 1,500 (EUR 1,292) in restitution to the commercial fisher whose gear he stole. Vest was also forced to forfeit his commercial fishing vessel, Silver Surfer, and all the gear on board, which included 63 Dungeness crab pots. Vest will not be allowed to participate in the Dungeness crab fishery until his probation is complete; if he violates that condition, he could have another year and a half of jail time added to his sentence.
