Marine Management Organisation
On 9 April 2015 at Bodmin Magistrates Court, the master and owner of Irish fishing vessel Skipper DA59 were each convicted following guilty pleas after being charged by the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) with breaching fisheries regulations.
The court heard how on 5 April 2015 the Skipper DA59 was boarded and inspected by Royal Navy fisheries protection vessel HMS Mersey. The fishing vessel was targeting nephrops using a technique known as quad rigging, where four nets are towed behind the vessel simultaneously. When the vessel was boarded by Fishery Protection Officers 7 net infringements were detected in contravention of section 30(1) of the Fisheries Act 1981 as read with article 3(a) of Commission Regulation (EC) No 494/2002 and article 7(3) of Council Regulation (EC) No 850/98.
Having heard the facts and the defendants mitigation the court fined the master, Phillip McEvoy, 1,000, ordered a payment of a victim surcharge of 120 and 1,000 towards the costs of the prosecution.
The owner of the vessel, Craig Byrne, was ordered to pay a fine of 2,000, a victim surcharge of 120 and, 3,084 towards the costs of the prosecution.