Fishermen Pay Up For Illegal Catch

Seventeen fishermen pay fines Tuesday for illegally catching and keeping black sea bass during the closed season on a party boat in February.

According to the Asbury Park Press, the anglers paid anywhere from $200 to $1500 in fines in Manasquan Municipal Court.

The court appearance was the culmination of a sting by two undercover State Department of Environmental Protection Conservation Officers posing as passengers on the party boat Jamaica on February 17th.

Reports say, the Jamaicia was on an offshore trip targeting cod, pollock and hake when passengers caught and kept black sea bass which is off limits until the end of May.