The owner of a United States seafood supplier was sentenced to two years in prison and ordered to pay nearly USD 1.5 million (EUR 1.3 million) for his part in an illegal sea cucumber harvesting scheme.
Hoon Namkoong, owner of Orient Seafood Production of Fife, Washington, admitted to conspiring with others to underreport the amount of sea cucumbers they purchased for processing by approximately 250,000 pounds, Annette L. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Washington, said in a statement from the agency.
“This defendant lined his pockets by purchasing and selling illegally harvested sea cucumbers equal to as much as 20 percent of the total allowed statewide harvest,” Hayes said.
Namkoong admitted that he falsified fish tickets, failed to prepare fish tickets or retain confirmation of fish tickets submitted by third parties, and frequently paid fishers in cash for their sea cucumbers so there would be no financial record of the total amount of sea cucumbers taken.
Orient Seafood Production made nearly USD 1.5 million (EUR 1.3 million) after shipping the sea cucumbers to wholesale seafood buyers in the U.S. and Asia. As a result, Namkoong was ordered to pay the same amount in restitution to the state of Washington and Tribal entities.
By creating the market for illegal harvesters, Namkoong caused “significant damage to sea cucumber populations and habitat that may take years to repair,” said Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez at Namkoong’s hearing.
The case was investigated by the NOAA Office of Law Enforcement and the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife.
