A former salmon draft net licence holder has been found guilty of two breaches of fisheries legislation when he was found to be in possession of 13 untagged salmon in the boot of his vehicle.
Liam Whyte of Ardara, Co Donegal was convicted in relation to an illegal fishing incident which occurred on 10 July 2017.
The case was first heard in Glenties District Court on 27 February 2019 where Whyte was convicted and fined €1,300 for possession of the salmon,and fined costs of €750.
In light of previous convictions, the court imposed a sentence of three months’ imprisonment which was suspended for two years, on condition that there be no further convictions under the Fisheries Acts during that time.
Whyte appealed the ruling to Donegal Circuit Court and the case was heard on 14 March 2023.
As Whyte had not come to the attention of the courts in the intervening period, the court waived the three-month suspended sentence and instead convicted Whyte on two counts of breaches in fisheries legislation with fines amounting to €2,800 and costs of €979.63.
Commenting on the outcome of the case, Dr Milton Matthews, director of the North Western River Basin District at Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) said: “I commend the ongoing vigilance of our fisheries protection officers who conduct extensive surveillance operations throughout the year to ensure that licensed salmon draft net holders comply fully with the strict tagging and quota regulations.
“Any salmon killed in excess of the quota identified for any particular salmon fishery directly impacts on the long-term sustainability of that salmon fishery.
“It is critical for all stakeholders to strictly abide by tagging and quota regulations to safeguard the future of these valuable fisheries. Members of the public can report incidents of illegal fishing, water pollution and fish kills, to Inland Fisheries Ireland’s 24-hour confidential hotline number on 0818 34 74 24.”
