Well this is getting better $72K in fines and conditions

[Pippen]

It's a shame there isn't more money for resources out on the water....or at MacDonald Beach and other launches where it's no secret a lot of this comes in through.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/vancouver-seafood-retailer-fined-70k-1.3948569

Vancouver retailer fined over $70K for illegally bought spot prawns, crab
Officer said DFO pleased court made rare move of imposing conditions on store for a two-year period​

A seafood market in Vancouver has been fined $72,500 for purchasing local spot prawns and Dungeness crabs that were harvested outside of the legal commercial season, marking the second major fine for the retailer in recent years.

Lawyers for Yat Ming Enterprises — which runs a seafood market on Kingsway Street — pleaded guilty in provincial court to purchasing the seafood illegally in January, February and March of 2014, according to Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

The ruling followed a major investigation by conservation and protection fisheries officers from the DFO — which was initiated after they received an anonymous complaint about the store.

Officers inspected the store and, on one occasion in March 2014, seized 826 pounds of illegally harvested Dungeness crab, said DFO fisheries officer Shannon Rivest.

A conservation issue

The commercial harvesting season for spot prawn is generally open from May through to June, and in the Lower Mainland the commercial season for Dungeness crab begins around June or July and typically closes around the end of November, Rivest said.

"They need time to reproduce, and they're closed in that season in this area so they can help reproduce and provide a sustainable fishery for future generations," she said.

In a previous court case heard in February 2014, Yat Ming Enterprises was fined $12,000 for possessing a significant number of undersized Dungeness crabs in their Kingsway Street store's live holding tanks.

Following the latest ruling, the company has been ordered to follow several conditions for a period of two years to prove the legality of their seafood products.

Rare conditions imposed on retailer

The conditions include a ban on receiving deliveries of any local Dungeness crabs or local spot prawns between 8 p.m. and 9 a.m., and reporting details of their deliveries such as time periods, species and quantities to the DFO.

Rivest said it is rare for the court to impose conditions like this in addition to a fine.

"The fact that this company was ordered to go above and beyond in proving its legality of the crab and prawn they're selling to the public … is quite a success for DFO," Rivest said.

"I hope this is the direction we see repeat offenders going."

A number of Lower Mainland seafood companies, fishermen and fishing resorts have been fined for violations following investigations by Fisheries and Oceans Canada in recent months.

In early 2016 the operator of another Vancouver seafood company was fined $30,000 for also purchasing spot prawns caught out of season — in January and February 2014.

In December 2016, a luxury fishing resort on Haida Gwaii was fined a total of $32,000 for illegal fishing activities such as exceeding the two-day limit allowed on a recreational fishing licence.​

 

[TheBigGuy]

No offense Pip, but I think this is simply a joke. In my opinion this is nothing but an organized crime operation and for there second offense all the companies assets should have been seized and the proceeds should be donated to fisheries conservation. The illegal harvest and sale of seafood has become a huge money making business on the west coast. If they were making money off the sale of drugs and had been convicted before all their assets would likely have been seized as proceeds of crime. In this instance I feel the issue is far worse than some backyard grow op. The money this business illegally made is generated from selling seafood that they have in effect stolen from the Canadian public who are the rightful owners of this shared resource. Until these illegal seafood sales rings are treated the same as someone growing or importing drugs to make illegal profits the perpetrators will never stop. This and all other fines handed out is merely a slap on the wrist and is simply the cost of doing business. Three spot prawns are going for $15 in local supermarkets these days, imagine how much money these illegal sales are generating. At the minimum the business licences should be revoked for a second conviction. Start seizing assets and declaring these types of underground seafood poachers organized crime operations and things will start to change. Until then they will just keep stealing resources from the Canadian public pay their fine and write it off as a minor cost of doing business.

 

[Pippen]

I don't disagree that it should be MUCH higher and much more severe with seizures, loss of licenses etc. I think when it comes to ALL natural resource offenses whether it come from the ocean, lake, river or land with respect to game those caught are being penalized nowhere near severely enough. I guess when I said "getting better" is that it is a higher fine than we've seen in recent years.

 

[TheBigGuy]

It is good to see that enforcement of commercial violations are starting to be prosecuted on a regular basis again. Many years of budget cuts in the DFO on the west coast have left enforcement woefully lacking for many years. Hopefully prosecuting these types of violations will again become a priority with higher staffing levels. The sports sector poaching is totally insignificant compared to the illegal harvesting that takes place for sale in retail stores and restaurants. The illegal harvest in the sports sector could be tallied in pounds, the the organized illegal harvests that take place using commercial gear probably is thousands of tons coast wide. To put a dent in this trade the penalties must be made far more severe.