MARATHON — A commercial lobster captain and three mates accused of possessing more than 160 undersized lobsters and a litany of other violations were arrested, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Alfredo Gonzalez Tapia, 48 of Marathon, and three mates were charged and taken to jail after four FWC officers stopped them on the gulfside on Saturday.
During a commercial vessel stop, the commercial craft was carrying 165 short lobsters and three out of season and undersized hogfish, reports say. Given the number of violations, the vessel was escorted back to the dock and another inspection was performed on the vessel and its traps.
All 173 of the traps had violations with buoy numbers that resulted in more charges, reports say.
The captain of the vessel and the three crewman were charged with four felonies and 806 misdemeanors and one boating citation.
The vessel was seized and all the contraband was documented and put into evidence.
Information in the Crime Report is obtained from reports provided by area law enforcement agencies.
If you have information that could help solve a crime in the Florida Keys, call Crime Stoppers, 800-346-TIPS.
