From The Jamaica Gleaner

NASSAU, Bahamas, CMC – Seven fishermen from the Dominican Republic were fined more than US$2.8 million after they pleaded guilty to poaching in Bahamian waters last weekend.

The seven, Fausto Garcia, Gabriel Pailora, Carlos Duran, Ramon Lopez, Carlos Rodriguez, Elias Simon, and Juan Duran were charged with four offences under the Fisheries Resources Act including being in possession of a grouper during the closed season from December,1 to February 28 next year.

The Royal Bahamas Defence Force Monday said that the foreign fishermen were detained on November 11 aboard two small go-fast type boats in the area of Little Inagua with approximately 150 pounds of scaled fish and lobster.

When they appeared in court at the weekend, the fishermen were fined a total of US$413,000 each or nine months in jail.

The army said that prior to the incident, they had detained 172 Dominican poachers and four Dominican fishing vessels with over 100,000 pounds of fisheries products in the months of June, July and October of this year.

“The poachers were all charged and found guilty by the courts for various fishing violations, and sentenced to time ranging from six to 18 months at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services; total fines awarded were approximately seven million dollars,” the army said in a statement.

For more on this story go to: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/caribbean/20181217/fishermen-fined-us28-million-illegally-fishing-bahamas