Three anglers from Nottingham and one from Loughborough have been found guilty at Northampton Magistrates Court of fishing illegally in cases brought by the Environment Agency on Monday 13 January 2025.
Stuart Gotheridge, 31, of Henrietta Street, Nottingham was found guilty in absence of fishing without a licence at Beechwood Park, Elvaston on 3 July 2024. He was fined £220 and ordered to pay costs of £135 and a victim surcharge of £88.
Zbigniew Malczak, of Hartley Road, Nottingham pleaded guilty of using a keepnet of less than 2.0 metres in length and to fishing without a licence at Attenborough – River Trent on 28 July 2024. He was fined £146 and ordered to pay costs of £135 and a victim surcharge of £58.
Mariusz Wolanski, 57, of Hartley Road, Nottingham pleaded guilty of using a keepnet of less than 2.0 metres in length at Attenborough – River Trent on 28 July 2024. He was fined £100 and ordered to pay costs of £135 and a victim surcharge of £40.
Matthew Mee, 52, of Long Close, Loughborough, pleaded guilty of fishing without a licence at Pride Lakes, Hemington on 3 July 2024. He was fined £146 and ordered to pay costs of £135 and a victim surcharge of £58.
A day’s fishing licence would have cost just £7.10, or an annual fee from £35.80.
A spokesperson for the Environment Agency said:
“We hope the penalties these illegal anglers have received will act as a deterrent to anyone who is thinking of breaking the laws we have in place across England.
“Fishing illegally can incur a fine of up to £2,500 and offenders can also have their fishing equipment seized. We inspect rod licences 24/7, seven days a week to check on cases of illegal fishing and for those caught cheating the system, we will always prosecute.
“Illegal fishing undermines the Environment Agency’s efforts to protect fish stocks and make fishing sustainable. Money raised from fishing licence sales is used to protect and improve fish stocks and fisheries for the benefit of legal anglers.”
Any angler aged 13 or over, fishing on a river, canal or still water needs a licence to fish. A 1-day licence costs from just £7.10, and an annual licence costs from £35.80 (concessions 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 807060 or anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
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