Man from Trowbridge fined for illegal fishing activities
Angler's £120 fine dwarfed cost of rod licence
A costly day's fishing. A fine, costs and a victim surcharge totalling more than £300 for a Wiltshire man, when a day licence was just £6. File pic.
A man has been ordered to pay £303 for fishing illegally in Warminster.
Damian Boczek, 23, from The Midlands, Holt in Trowbridge, was fined £120 after he was caught fishing for freshwater fish or eels without a rod licence in Shearwater Lake, in Warminster, on 23 July 2023.
The case was heard by Swindon magistrates’ court on 30 January 2024. Boczek’s guilty plea was accepted. In addition to the £120 fine, the court ordered Boczek to pay £135 in costs and a victim surcharge of £48.
James Allan, an Environment Agency fisheries enforcement officer, said:
Money raised from fishing licence sales is used to protect and improve fish stocks and fisheries, benefitting anglers and, for those caught cheating the system, we will always prosecute.
Boczek disregarded signs at the fisheries that said an Environment Agency rod licence was needed to fish.
Rod fishing byelaws are there to protect fish stocks and their habitats. If you do not comply with these byelaws you could face prosecution and be fined up to £2,500.
Any angler aged 13 or over, fishing on a river, canal or still water needs a licence. A 1-day licence costs from just £6 and an annual licence costs from just £30 - concessions are available. Junior licences are free for 13 - 16-year-olds. Licences are available from www.gov.uk/get-a-fishing-licence or by calling the Environment Agency on 0344 800 5386 between 8am and 6pm, Monday to Friday.
The Environment Agency carries out enforcement work all-year-round and is supported by partners including the police and the Angling Trust. Fisheries enforcement work is intelligence-led, targeting known hot-spots and where illegal fishing is reported.
Anyone with information about illegal fishing activities can contact the Environment Agency incident hotline 24/7 on 0800 80 70 60 or anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Background:
Damian Boczek was charged with:
On 23 July 2023 at Shearwater Lake, Warminster, in a place where fishing is regulated fished for freshwater fish or eels by means of an unlicensed fishing instrument, namely rod and line, contrary to Section 27(1)(a) of the Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975.