Game wardens say poachers were 173 fish over the limit.
Game Wardens everywhere are busier than ever combating poaching cases. Most of these tend to involve the poaching of big game animals. However, the Texas Game Wardens made a fish poaching bust at the end of last year that had to shock even the most seasoned of wardens.
In a Facebook post, the wardens announced an anonymous tip back on November 27, 2020 that led wardens in Upshur County to a dumped pile of fish remains at Lake O' the Pines. The fish were found to be crappies that had been filleted.
The Game Wardens' press release was short and to the point. They do not state how the investigation proceeded from there, but it eventually led the wardens to two fishermen who had a staggering 350 crappie fillets in their possession. The daily bag limit for crappies is 25 fish in any combination in Texas. That means that the poachers were approximately 173 fish over the legal limit.
Unfortunately, these types of gross over-the-limit fish poaching cases are not uncommon. And crappies are a species that are often targeted in these types of cases. Game Wardens have made similar busts in states like Wisconsin and Minnesota in the past. There is one small silver lining to this case. All those poached fish will not go to waste. The wardens seized all the fillets and they were donated to area families to be used in meals.
The Wardens posted a photo of two coolers and numerous ziplock baggies full of fish with their press release. The post concludes by saying that multiple civil charges in the case and likely civil restitution is pending for this case. We will keep an eye on this case and bring you any new developments if they are released right here at Wide Open Spaces.
For more outdoor content from Travis Smola, be sure to follow him on Twitter and check out his Geocaching and Outdoors with Travis YouTube channels.
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