May 24, 2012 – BOSTON—A Connecticut man was convicted today in federal court of providing false information to the United States Department of Commerce, specifically the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Special Master, in order to obtain reimbursement for fines he had previously paid.
Bruce Fitzsimmons, 54, of Canterbury, Connecticut, waived indictment and entered a plea today before U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton to knowingly and willfully making a materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statement and representation in a matter before the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Fitzsimmons was previously employed as a commercial fisherman in Massachusetts. Between 2005 and 2006, he received two separate notices of violations based upon, among other things, fishing in closed areas. Initially, Fitzsimmons agreed to a fine of $60,000 and a suspension of his fishing permit. After receiving a second violation notice for a separate violation, Fitzsimmons advised the NOAA General Counsel that he was no longer in the fishing business. Fitzsimmons negotiated a settlement for both violations and agreed to pay a total fine of $50,000 for both violations. Fitzsimmons sold his fishing permit to a third party for $80,000 and used a portion of the money to pay off his fine.
In June 2009, in response to complaints from the fishing industry, the Department of Commerce appointed a special master for the District of Massachusetts to review decisions and outcomes of cases handled by NOAA’s Office of General Counsel for Enforcement and Litigation.
Read the full release from the FBI.