Springvale shop owner convicted, fined for abalone trafficking

A shop owner in Springvale has been convicted and fined $25,000 and ordered to pay $6,500 in costs in the Melbourne Magistrates Court for trafficking a commercial quantity of abalone.

Director of Education and Enforcement at the Victorian Fisheries Authority (VFA) Ian Parks said the significant penalty should act as a deterrent to retailers considering buying seafood from illegitimate sources not authorised to collect or sell it.

“The high commercial value of abalone has made it attractive to unlawful black-market activity,” Mr Parks said. “Abalone are particularly vulnerable to people using guises such as recreational fishing to take them for commercial purposes.”

Under the Fisheries Act, abalone are a priority species and subject to higher levels of protection to ensure wild stocks remain sustainable. Holders of commercial fishery access licences are the only people permitted to take fish, including abalone, for sale from Victorian waters.

Mr Parks said in this instance investigators from the VFA’s Statewide Investigations Group had identified the man receiving 10 kilograms of shucked (shelled) abalone meat and one greenlip abalone, for which he paid unlawful divers $900.

“The sale took place in a multi-storey car park with some of the abalone later located by investigators during an inspection of the retail outlet owned by the man, who made full admissions,” added Mr Parks.

Individuals who have seen or who suspect illegal fishing are advised to call VFA’s 24/7 reporting service, 13 FISH (13 3474), to speak directly to a Fisheries Officer.