The UK Marine Management Organisation (MMO) fined the master of a fishing vessel, a director of the company that owns the vessel and the company itself, £75,000 for fishing without a licence.
Namely, the company, which owned the vessel ‘Catatonia’, company director and the master of the vessel, were ordered to pay £75,000 by North Shields Magistrates’ Court, on 9 November.
[smlsubform prepend=”GET THE SAFETY4SEA IN YOUR INBOX!” showname=false emailtxt=”” emailholder=”Enter your email address” showsubmit=true submittxt=”Submit” jsthanks=false thankyou=”Thank you for subscribing to our mailing list”]
The court heard how between January and September 2017 the ‘Catatonia’ conducted 31 fishing trips, while it did not have a valid licence from the MMO for commercial fishing.
The MMO advised the company to complete the necessary paperwork before and after the transfer of the vessel to their ownership in January 2017. 18 of the fishing trips made without a licence were made after the MMO had sent a letter to the vessel owners clarifying that it was unlicensed and that its use for commercial fishing would be an offence.
During the trips, 18,458kg of razor clams were landed with a total value of £103,979.50. The company, its company director, and the master all pleaded guilty in court.
The company was ordered to pay a total of £65,010, the company’s director was fined £9,850 and the master was fined £383 and order to pay a victim surcharge of £38.
The vessel became licensed in November 2017 after the owners completed the necessary paperwork and took the relevant measures for a fishing vessel licence to be issued.
