Black market fishers who planned Fiji holiday given home detention instead
Tuesday, 3 May 2016
Black market fishers who unwittingly told an undercover officer they would be holidaying in Fiji with their earnings will instead be housebound after both were sentenced to home detention.
Unemployed Napier couple Warren Hutchings, 45, and Katie Baker, 40, were among those caught in the Ministry of Primary Industries 'River' operation, conducted in Hawke's Bay and East Coast between September 2014 and August 2015.
The operation involved an undercover officer and targeted black-market rock lobster and paua sales throughout the region.
Between January 2014 and August 2015 Hutchings met the officer and sold him blackmarket fish on 17 occasions.
**READ MORE:
* 43 busted in crayfish sting operation
* Community work for Kaikoura man after crayfish sting
* Crayfish poaching busts divide community
* Group charged in illegal crayfishing case
* Fisher's penalty could include losing boat**
Hutchings would dive for the catch, often at Pourerere, east of Waipawa, and he and Baker would shuck the paua.
After the agent paid them $980 for 35 paua on on May 13 last year, Baker said: 'Choice, now we're off to Fiji with this lot.'
A few days later Hutchings and Baker told the officer they wanted to charge more for the paua because they needed spending money on their holiday.
Over 19 months the couple were paid $6,225 cash by the officer for 211.6 kilograms of paua and 18kg of rock lobster.
That legitimate commercial value of that paua and rock lobster was about $18,600.
Neither Hutchings or Baker held fishing quota or permits or licenses that would have allowed them to take or sell fish commercially.
Hutchings pleaded guilty to 17 charges of obtaining a benefit by selling fish in contravention of the Fisheries Act. Baker pleaded guilty to eight charges of aiding and abetting Hutchings.
They appeared in Napier District Court on Tuesday.
Hutchings was sentenced to seven months home detention and 150 hours community work. Baker was sentenced to three months home detention and 75 hours community work.
Operation River uncovered illegal trading in 1.8 tonnes of paua and 600 crayfish.
Six other people have been dealt with by the court on charges of illegally selling fish from the operation. They have received a range of sentences including prison, community detention, community work, $15,000 in fines and forfeiture of vehicles and cell phones and one ban from all fishing activity.
Sign up to receive our new evening newsletter Two Minutes of Stuff - the news, but different