In recent news, two individuals from Tennessee have been fined a total of $10,550 and ordered to provide restitution for unlawfully harvesting fish from a Mississippi lake, as disclosed by the U.S. Department of Justice on Monday.
Jian Wu Huang, aged 50, and Qiu M Huang, aged 44, both residents of Lakeland, Tennessee, pleaded guilty to a single count of exceeding the daily bag limit for crappie fishing at the Enid Lake Spillway earlier this year, according to legal documents. Their actions involved capturing 171 crappie, surpassing the creel limit of 15 per individual, employing oversized hooks, and exceeding the maximum allowable number of hooks per line.
As part of the sentencing, each man has been instructed to pay a $1,000 fine and provide $4,275 in restitution to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks. Furthermore, they are placed under probation for one year, which restricts them from fishing globally and bans their access to all Corps of Engineers property within the Northern District of Mississippi.
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement Special Agent in Charge, Stephen Clark, emphasized their dedication to working in partnership with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks to safeguard state trust species and enforce federal regulations against illegal capture and interstate transport. These efforts aim to conserve and protect wildlife, plants, and their habitats, maintaining a collaborative approach with state partners in investigating and prosecuting these violations.
Image/Source: WREG
