Saving Seafood

NOAA Office of Law Enforcement Names Three New Assistant Directors

March 26, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

The NOAA Office of Law Enforcement is pleased to announce the appointments of Manny Antonaras, Martina Sagapolu, and Everett Baxter as their newest Assistant Directors. Antonaras was recently selected to lead the Southeast Division based in St. Petersburg, Florida and Sagapolu has been leading the Pacific Islands Division in Honolulu, Hawaii since last spring. Baxter took over the Investigative Operations Division in Silver Spring, Maryland last fall. As Assistant Directors in the regions, Antonaras and Sagapolu serve as OLE’s top regional leadership. At headquarters, Baxter leads OLE’s domestic and international investigative operations.

“NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement is essential to the sustainable management of our nation’s federal fisheries and the conservation of our protected marine species and habitats,” said Jim Landon, Director of NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement. “Together, Manny, Martina, and Everett bring a wealth of experience to their new roles with more than 65 years of federal law enforcement experience. I have every confidence that they will continue to support NOAA’s mandate to end overfishing and to protect marine resources through fair and effective enforcement of the laws and regulations under OLE’s jurisdiction.”

In his role as OLE’s Assistant Director in the Southeast, Antonaras oversees the largest of the continental divisions. The region has approximately 3,230 miles of coastline covering the South Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean. It is home to three national marine sanctuaries—the Florida Keys, Gray’s Reef, and Flower Garden Banks—and the international border between Mexico and the United States where the division is actively engaged in combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing and seafood fraud.

Antonaras previously served as the Deputy Special Agent in Charge for OLE’s Southeast Division beginning in 2014. In this role, he oversaw the civil and criminal investigative work performed by special agents and enforcement officers. He also oversaw the division’s investigative support group, enforcement programs, and all patrol activities. During his tenure, Antonaras expanded the undercover operations program. He was instrumental in significantly increasing the uniformed enforcement officer program to enhance OLE’s visible presence and partnerships across the Southeast. He first joined OLE in 2002 as a student volunteer. He was hired as a special agent at the St. Petersburg, Florida field office after receiving his B.A. in Environmental Studies and Sociology from Eckerd College.

Read the full release here

NOAA Training Aims To Stop Illegal Fishing within U.S. territories and International Waters

August 24, 2016 — In June the Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA) entered into force globally, marking a major milestone in the effort to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing. To maximize the effectiveness of the PSMA, broad implementation is critical and international capacity building has become of the utmost importance. NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement (OLE) stepped up to ensure domestic implementation of the operational provisions went forward as quickly as possible. The Office of Law Enforcement has also begun the important task of working with international partners on training and implementation as well.

NOAA has responsibility for enforcing marine resource laws of the United States and is the lead agency for enforcement of the PSMA. The Office of Law Enforcement was also tasked with providing technical assistance to other countries for the PSMA, under the President’s Task Force. So, they went to work on an implementation plan, as well as creating training modules for state, territorial, and international partners. Before the training was initiated in the U.S. territories, there was a three-day conference with staff from OLE headquarters, national training team and Pacific Island Division. In this meeting, national level training materials were refined and tailored to the specific needs of the Pacific Island Region as well as reviewed to ensure the modules were comprehensive, but as simple as possible.

“We wanted to make sure that the training material is easy to understand, yet covers all areas necessary to meet PSMA requirements,” said Deputy Special Agent in Charge Martina Sagapolu of OLE-PID. “We knew the implementation of PSMA will directly impact American Samoa because this is the main U.S. port where the foreign fleet delivers its catch daily. The (Pago Pago) port sees all sizes of FFV and the inspection process under PSMA is arduous. Ensuring the training material was simple yet straightforward is critical for our partners.”

After the conference, training commenced — first with American Samoa, then Guam.

“The training was extremely beneficial to all involved,” said Special Agent Todd Dubois, Assistant Director of Operations for the Office of Law Enforcement. “The American Samoa Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources officers that participated in the workshop were very receptive to the implementation training. There were numerous discussions that highlighted the importance of information sharing, collaborative enforcement efforts and thorough vessel inspections to further promote PSMA compliance and combat IUU fishing.”

Read the full story at the U.S. State Department