An Auckland man described as New Zealand's worst ever recreational fish poacher has been fined $4000 and had his equipment seized.
The 27-year-old, who has been granted interim name suppression, was repeatedly caught fishing at the Long Bay-Okura Marine Reserve, an area where fishing is illegal.
He was warned five times by maritime police, fisheries officers, and Department of Conservation staff after being caught fishing there.
"But he kept on offending," said Dylan Swain of the Department of Conservation.
He was warned five times by officials after being caught fishing at the Long Bay-Okura Marine Reserve, but that didn't stop him. (Source: 1News)
The summary of facts detailed his illegal fishing that resulted in the criminal charges.
On March 24, 2022 about 7pm a DOC ranger received intel that someone was fishing in the marine reserve from the shore.
Due to the low tide at the time, a police boat could not be deployed. Instead, a police helicopter took to the sky and confirmed that someone was fishing in the reserve.
After he returned to his car the man was stopped by police.
He initially claimed he wasn't fishing in the reserve, but DOC seized 21 snapper, a kayak and two fishing rods.
On June 24 the same year, on Matariki weekend, the same ranger was on patrol and saw through a telephoto lens the same man fishing in a remote part of the reserve. They could not catch him.
But the next day, June 25, he was seen again using hand lines to catch fish from inside the marine reserve.
This time the ranger caught up to him, and the man, who had a young child with him, said he was not fishing and was instead playing on the beach.
In mid-October, 2022 he was found with another man using a small dinghy. A suitcase of paua was found hidden behind a rock.
Later that month he was also caught using a set net.
He was charged by DOC and Fisheries with five crimes in total around unlawful fishing, taking paua and using a set net.
Judge Kevin Glubb spoke of the repeat nature of the offending when sentencing the man today at the North Shore District Court.
"We all benefit from the fact of those controls in place and by you taking them when you should not, you impact on that fishery and that ultimately impacts on the community," he said.
Swain said DOC very rarely prosecuted people for fishing in marine reserves, and the fact the department has done so in this case speaks to the seriousness of the offending.
"This is the most serious case of recidivist marine reserve offending the department has ever seen," he told 1News.
"If you are going to fish for a feed there are hundreds of places around New Zealand where you can do
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