A 42-year-old man from High Wycombe was fined $400 for failing to provide his name to Western Australia Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) fisheries officers during questioning and was also fined $150 and issued a $40 mandatory additional penalty for possession of protected fish.
The officers found the man to be in possession of an undersized black bream at Perth’s Old Swan Brewery Jetty in March last year.
The legal minimum size limit for black bream is 250 mm in length and there is a daily bag limit of six bream per fisher. In the Swan and Canning Rivers, only two of these fish can exceed 400 mm in length.
DPIRD Senior Fisheries and Marine Officer Mark Davies said the seized black bream measured only 233 mm and was returned to the water.
“The rules for black bream were designed to allow the fish to reach maturity and manage stocks for sustainability,” Mr Davies said. “When fisheries officers suspect an offence, all fishers are legally required to provide their name when questioned. In this case, the man failed to comply with lawful requirements to provide information to fisheries officers and he left the area.”
Mr Davies added that fisheries officers were able to use other methods of investigation to positively identify and locate the accused and prosecute the matter.
The man was also ordered to pay court costs of $194.39.
Anyone who suspects illegal fishing activity should call FishWatch at 1800 815 507 or report the matter via the online form on Crimestoppers.