A fisherman from the U.S. state of Alaska has been sentenced to six months in prison after pleading guilty to illegally fishing and ordering his crew to shoot and kill a sperm whale.
Dugan Paul Daniels of Coffman Cove, Alaska, U.S.A., violated the U.S. Endangered Species Act by having one of his crew shoot a sperm whale and then attempt to ram it with their fishing vessel, the F/V Pacific Bounty.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska, in a release announcing the sentencing, said Daniels documented the encounter in writing and through text messages sent from a GPS communications device that said he wished he “had a cannon” to blow the whale out of the water and that he hoped he’d soon be “reeling in a dead sperm whale.”
“Though he had been a fisherman for over 20 years, Mr. Daniels showed a blatant disregard for endangered animals, the laws that protect them, and the regulation of commercial fishing,” U.S. Attorney of the District of Alaska Michael J. Heyman said. “Let this sentence serve as an example that these violations will not go unpunished.”
Daniels also falsified fishing records, trying to make it appear that he caught sablefish – or black cod – in federal waters legally. An investigation revealed he harvested the fish – worth USD 127,528 (EUR 116,697) – illegally inside Alaska state waters.
“Falsifying recordkeeping and reporting documents has a direct effect on sustainable fishery management and interferes with Alaska’s ability to ensure species are not overfished,” Heyman said. “Our office, in collaboration with our wildlife law enforcement partners, is committed to holding all individuals to the same standards and will continue to seek criminal sanctions for wildlife crimes.”
In Daniels' original plea agreement, he agreed to plead guilty, pay a fine of USD 25,000 (EUR 22,800), and perform 80 hours of community service, along with a sentence of no more than six months in prison. Daniels will also be banned from all commercial fishing for a year after his release form prison, and his fishing activities after that will be tracked by the National Marine Fisheries Service using a vessel-monitoring system.
