Saving Seafood

Enforcement

US Department of Justice indicts Florida seafood company over alleged price-fixing

September 12, 2025 — The U.S. Department of Justice recently filed an indictment accusing multiple individuals at five different seafood companies of price-fixing and antitrust actions.

The indictment, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida alleges Dennis Dopico, the vice president of unnamed “Company 1” with headquarters in Miami, Florida, and co-conspirators at four other unnamed companies joined in a price-fixing conspiracy against fishermen harvesting stone crab and spiny lobsters in Florida.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Ex-CFO given prison sentence for stealing money from the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission

September 10 2025 — The former chief financial officer of the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission (PSMFC) was sentenced to prison and forced to pay restitution after pleading guilty to stealing money from the organization’s health benefit trust account.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Pamela Kahut stole USD 211,083 (EUR 180,173) from the commission between October 2014 and September 2020. At the time, she was serving as PSMFC’s chief financial officer and had access to the health benefit trust account operated for the commission’s employees. Some of the funding in that trust was provided via a federal grant.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Canada-led patrol of North Pacific uncovers 39 potential incidents of IUU

August 14, 2025 — The Canada Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) has revealed the results of its latest operation in the North Pacific to fight illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Canada launched Operation North Pacific Guard in May, marking the third straight year Canada’s DFO has led the annual high-seas patrol. This year, an unprecedented four separate countries – South Korea, Japan, Canada, and the U.S. – participated in the mission, covering thousands of nautical miles.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Inspector general says Coast Guard misses illegal fishing in US waters

June 24, 2025 — The Coast Guard only reached halfway toward its goals for intercepting illegal foreign fishing in U.S. waters during 2023-2024, as immigration enforcement and other missions absorbed more resources, according to a report by the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general.

“Although the Coast Guard recognizes IUU (illegal, unreported, and unregulated) fishing as one of the world’s top maritime security threats, its low interdiction rates and limited enforcement hours show a significant gap between the severity of the threat and the level of commitment required to effectively address it,” according to the inspector general report issued June 6.

In 2023 and 2024, “the Coast Guard estimatedthat it spent $687 million of its appropriations combating IUU fishing. Based on these estimates, we calculated that the Coast Guard spent approximately $5.9 million per IUU fishing interdiction,” the Homeland Security analysts wrote.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Inspector general reports US Coast Guard is not prioritizing IUU fishing enforcement

June 23, 2025 — A recent report by an internal U.S. government watchdog found that the U.S. Coast Guard is not prioritizing the prevention of illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) fishing, leading it to miss its interdiction goals for the last two years.

According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office of the Inspector General, the Coast Guard devoted just 4 percent of its mission hours to tackling IUU fishing in 2023 and 2024. While setting a goal of interdicting 40 percent of foreign fishing vessels illegally operating in U.S. waters, the Coast Guard only interdicted 21 percent of those vessels.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

NOAA Fisheries intercepted illegal tuna shipment destined for US grocery chain

June 3, 2025 — NOAA Fisheries has fined a U.S. grocery chain USD 12,516 (EUR 10,961) for illegally importing yellowfin tuna.

According to the agency, NOAA Fisheries’ Office of Law Enforcement collaborated with Virginia Conservation Police and U.S. Customs and Border Protection on a joint inspection of a container shipment at the Centralized Examination Station in Chesapeake, Virginia, U.S.A. Inside, law enforcement found more than 1,100 pounds of jarred yellowfin tuna with a declared value of USD 4,889 (EUR 4,281) destined for a grocery store chain.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement Foils Crab Trafficking Plot in Alaska

May 30, 2025 — NOAA Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement led an investigation that resulted in a Kodiak fisherman being sentenced to prison for illegally trafficking diseased crab from Alaska to Washington. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska handled the successful prosecution. On May 13, Corey Potter was sentenced to 1 year in prison and 2 years of supervised release. The sentence also included a worldwide ban on any commercial fishing for the duration of the term of his supervised release. Potter pleaded guilty to two felony counts of violating the Lacey Act in February.

In early March 2024, based on information from the Alaska Wildlife Troopers, NOAA Office of Law Enforcement initiated an investigation into two Alaska crab catcher vessels. They were allegedly transporting catch out of Alaska without first properly landing the crab in the state as required by law. Corey Potter was the owner and operator of the crab catcher vessels F/V Gambler and F/V Arctic Dawn. The investigation revealed that he directed the vessels’ captains and operators, Kyle Potter and Justin Welch, to transport live crab harvested in Alaska through Canadian waters to Seattle, where they planned to fetch higher prices for the sales. The F/V Arctic Dawn had more than 4,200 pounds of live Tanner crab on board, and the F/V Gambler held more than 2,900 pounds of live golden king crab.

Several crab fishermen expressed concern to Corey and Kyle Potter regarding their plan to transport the crab out of Alaska due to Bitter Crab Syndrome. The syndrome is a fatal parasitic disease impacting crustaceans. The fishermen cautioned that infected crab could harm the fishery’s reputation and, consequently, the market for Alaskan crab. Regardless, the captains unlawfully departed Alaska without landing the crab or submitting completed reports, in violation of Alaska law. They were fully aware that some of the Tanner crab were almost certainly infected. We tracked the vessels from Alaska to Washington, interdicted them at the dock in Seattle, and seized the catch. We collaborated with the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife Police, who offloaded the Tanner crab and disposed of them securely. Approximately 42 percent of the king crab were dead prior to landing and therefore unmarketable.

Co-defendant Welch pleaded guilty to one count of violating the Lacey Act and was sentenced on June 25, 2024, to 3 years’ probation, and a $10,000 fine. Co-defendant Kyle Potter pleaded guilty to one count of violating the Lacey Act. He was sentenced on July 10, 2024, to 5 years’ probation, including a 5-year worldwide ban on any commercial fishing and a $20,000 fine.

“The sustainability of Alaska’s fisheries depends on honest fishermen, strong statutory oversight, and industry members who engage in fair business practices,” said Benjamin Cheeseman, Assistant Director, NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement, Alaska Division. “These sentences serve to protect lawful stakeholders into the future, by sending a clear message to would-be offenders. We remain committed to holding violators accountable and safeguarding Alaska’s fisheries for future generations.”

NOAA Fisheries enforces statutes pertaining to seafood and federal fisheries. We work diligently to ensure compliance with these laws and take swift action when violations occur. We are committed to pursuing violators across state boundaries and international borders.

Read the full article at NOAA Fisheries

NOAA Fisheries Investigates Illegally Imported Tuna in Virginia

May 28, 2025 — A NOAA Fisheries investigation resulted in a grocery store chain paying a $12,516 civil penalty this February. They surrendered more than 1,100 pounds of yellowfin tuna, with a declared value of $4,889. In June 2023, NOAA Fisheries’ Office of Law Enforcement, Virginia Conservation Police, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection conducted a joint inspection of a container shipment at CBP’s Centralized Examination Station (CES) in Chesapeake, VA. Officers discovered jarred yellowfin tuna. Experts from NOAA Fisheries Tuna Tracking and Verification Program determined that two shipments of jarred tuna contained tuna from a Nicaraguan purse seiner. Nicaragua is one of seven “primary nations” that may not import certain non-fresh tuna products into the United States as they do not meet the dolphin-safe requirements under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. We do not permit import of those shipments into the United States.

NOAA’s Office of General Counsel Enforcement Section issued the civil penalty, known as a Notification of Violation and Assessment, to the grocery store chain. NOAA Fisheries’ trade monitoring and enforcement efforts protect U.S. consumers and law abiding U.S. seafood companies by stopping illegally traded seafood products from entering the U.S. market.

Trade Enforcement Efforts

We conduct trade enforcement efforts nationwide. Agents and officers routinely inspect container shipments at major U.S. seaports, airports, and border crossings into the United States. Additionally, we investigate cases referred to us by state and federal enforcement partners for suspected violations discovered during their independent trade enforcement work.

Our agents and officers in the Northeast initiated 55 new trade enforcement cases to protect U.S. consumers and businesses from January 1–March 31, 2025. “I couldn’t be more proud of the tremendous effort our agents and officers dedicate to preventing illegal seafood products from entering our markets,”  said James Cassin, acting assistant director, NOAA Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement, Northeast Division. “Leveling the playing field for U.S. fishermen and businesses is and has always been at the core of our mission.”

Trade Enforcement Prevents Illegal Imports

Seafood importers must pass through multiple layers of federal oversight to comply with U.S. and international seafood trade regulations. These include the seafood trade monitoring programs NOAA Fisheries administers. We established the national tuna program to ensure compliance with federal regulations regarding dolphin-safe certification. These regulations protect dolphin stocks vulnerable to purse seine fisheries in the Eastern Tropical Pacific. Ensuring compliance with seafood import requirements is an important part of our efforts to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.

You can reach the Northeast Office of Law Enforcement  at (978) 281-9213 and select “option 2” for regulatory compliance.

Read the full article at NOAA Fisheries 

US Justice Department indicts four Mexican fishers for illegal red snapper harvest

May 16, 2025 –A grand jury in Texas has indicted four Mexican fishers on charges of illegally harvesting red snapper in U.S. waters.

According to the criminal complaint, U.S. authorities observed a crew of four fishers from Matamoros, Mexico, operating several miles north of the U.S.-Mexico maritime border in the Gulf of Mexico, currently referred to as the Gulf of America by the U.S. government. Operating in an unmarked, unregistered, panga-style fishing vessel without running lights, the crew reportedly harvested 315 kilograms of red snapper.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

US ports to use Covid-like tests to identify illegally trafficked seafood species

April 7, 2025 — Last year, a colleague of Diego Cardeñosa sent the international shark trade researcher a few pieces of shark fin taken from a bowl of soup in New York City. Using a PCR test similar to those used during the Covid-19 pandemic to test for the virus, Cardeñosa was able to identify the species behind the fin as sandbar shark, an endangered species found in tropical and warm-temperate waters.

Now, Cardeñosa and other scientists from Florida International University, alongside law enforcement officials from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), plan to deploy the tests at ports across the country in order to crack down on seafood fraud and fish trafficking.

Illegal fishing adversely affects legitimate commercial fishers as well as fish populations. Almost a third of shark species are threatened or near threatened with extinction and the value of world trade in shark parts is almost $1bn a year, according to the UN.

At the same time, US consumption of seafood is increasing, rising by more than 30% in the decade from 2002. About 80% of this comes from foreign exports – mostly from Canada, Chile, India, Indonesia and Vietnam, according to the US department of agriculture.

Read the full article at The Guardian