Six men have been fined thousands of pounds after using 'barbaric' fishing methods.
In separate incidents, two groups of three men were seen using the foul hooking / snatching method of fishing in the River Loughor.
The method catches fish using multiple barbed hooks by pulling the fishing line out of the water as soon as any movement is felt. It results in piercing the fish in the flesh and internal organs, which can become infected and potentially infect other fish.
Natural Resources Wales enforcement officers spotted Swansea residents Joseph Arran Davies, Corey Charles Gilbert and Ryan Lee Jenkins using the illegal fishing method under the A484 in April, 2021.
The three pleaded guilty at Swansea Magistrates' Court to using the illegal fishing method. Joseph Davies and Ryan Jenkins were each fined £300 and ordered to pay costs of £1,800 each and a £34 victim surcharge. Corey Gilbert was fined £200 and ordered to pay £1,800 in costs and a £34 victim surcharge.
In a separate incident in June two months later, a further three men were observed by NRW officers using the same method to catch different species of fish, also in the River Loughor.
It followed several reports from members of the public regarding suspicious activity of illegal fishing under the A484 Loughor to Llanelli road bridge.
Phungan Nguyen, of Brecon, Vin Vinh Nguyen of Ystrad Mynach and Hung Le of Swansea, pleaded guilty in court; Phungan Nguyen and Vin Vinh Nguyen were each fined £400, ordered to pay costs of £1,800 each and also a £40 victim surcharge each.
Hung Le was fined £300, ordered to pay costs of £1,800 and a victim surcharge of £34.
All the men’s fishing equipment and the fish in their possession were seized.
Mark Thomas, fisheries enforcement officer for NRW, said: “The use of this barbaric and totally unethical form of fishing is being carried out by a minority of anglers.
“It is not only indiscriminate on what species or size of fish that are killed, but untold damage is also inflicted to fish by the anglers who use this method using deliberately tampered standard fishing lures.
“Many oversized and multiple treble hooked fishing lures have been seized which have been used to deliberately impale fish and inflict untold damaged to them when the multiple barbed treble hooks impale into their body flesh and internal organs. These damaged and wounded fish can become infected and die due to the injuries sustained and then possibly in the process infect other fish species in the river catchment.
“NRW enforcement officers and the local police forces take these fisheries incidents seriously as do the courts. Hopefully, the small minority of anglers who may in future think of using any illegal fishing methods will take heed of these heavy fines issued by the courts.
“We would like to thank Dyfed-Powys Police, the local communities and also the law-abiding anglers in the area for their continued support in reporting these illegal fishing activities"
PC Roger Jones, wildlife crime officer with Dyfed-Powys Police, added: “This prosecution is the result of a lot of determined work between Dyfed-Powys Police and Natural Resources Wales.
“The foul hooking method witnessed saw each individual cast out a line with very large treble hooks on lures, which they reeled in with a fast rod-jerking method with the intent to foul hook fish in the low water tide. It is a horrible, indiscriminate, and illegal fishing method.
“We are actively targeting the Loughor Estuary because of cases such as these, so we’re pleased they have received heavy fines and had all their rods and other kit seized.”
Anyone spotting suspicious or illegal activity on rivers, lakes and reservoirs should report it to the NRW incident hotline on 0300 065 3000.
Get Swansea stories straight to your inbox with our newsletter.
