Outdoor News Daily

Two people were arrested today in Quilcene as a result of a 13-month investigation into clam and oyster thefts from state and private lands.

Enforcement officers with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), working with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, made the arrests after serving search warrants on G & R Quality Seafood – also known as Quil Bay Seafood – in Quilcene. Officers seized 300 pounds of hard-shell clams, 100 pounds of oysters, two barges, a 16-foot fiberglass vessel, five firearms and a van. The seized shellfish did not bear required certification from the state Department of Health and will be destroyed as required by state law, according to WDFW Enforcement Deputy Chief Mike Cenci.
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A Queen Anne’s County District Court judge found John Franklin Riggs, 45 of Rock Hall, guilty of possessing oversized rockfish and suspended the waterman’s tidal fish license for a year. This suspension means Riggs cannot engage in any commercial fishing activity until March 10, 2011.

“We commend the court’s decision on this very important issue,” said Department of Natural Resources Secretary John Griffin. “Hard working Marylanders have invested far too much in our Bay and our fisheries to allow the theft of these fragile resources.”

NRP charged Riggs on January 11, 2010 with possessing striped bass larger than 36” during the commercial striped bass gill net season; Riggs also has a history of natural resources violations.
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The Department of Natural Resources and Environment will seek other legal options in the 2009 Little Bay de Noc gill net case.

“In light of the U.S. Attorney’s Office decision to not pursue charges, we are continuing to explore our legal options regarding potential violations of state law outside of the jurisdiction of the 2000 consent decree,” said DNRE Director Rebecca Humphries.

In 2000, the United States, the state of Michigan, and five separate Native American tribes in Michigan entered into a consent decree that established an agreement between all the parties regarding allocation, management, and regulation of fishing in 1836 Treaty waters.
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DNREC Fish and Wildlife Enforcement agents on Feb. 6 arrested a Dagsboro man on hunting-related violations.

Paul E. Daisey, age 29, of 14623 Blue Heron Drive, Dagsboro, was arrested and charged with three counts of failure to tag antlerless deer, three counts of possession of unlawfully taken game and one count of unlawful method of take.

Daisey was taken to Justice of the Peace Court No. 3 in Georgetown, where he pled guilty to all charges and was assessed fines totaling $3,039.

Citizens are encouraged to report fish and wildlife violations to the Delaware Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Section at 302-739-4580.

For further information, contact Sgt. Gregory Rhodes, Fish and Wildlife Enforcement, at 302-739-9913.