Robert Bruce Wigmore, a 34-year-old Napier commercial fisher, has been sentenced in the Hastings District Court after failing to report portions of his catch and dumping snapper at sea across two trips, an incident that later drew public attention when the fish washed up on Westshore Beach.
Appearing before the court on 2 December, Wigmore received 3 months of community detention and 9 months of supervision. He may also be required to undertake education or counselling at the direction of probation staff. The sentencing followed six charges laid under the Fisheries Act by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), arising from an investigation into trips made in September last year.
The first incident involved a catch of 162kg of flatfish, of which 31kg was never entered into a landing report. Rather than landing that unreported portion, Wigmore kept it on board. On a subsequent trip, he caught 175kg of snapper but omitted 84kg from his landing documentation. That unreported snapper was then thrown overboard while St Kathryn drifted offshore.
The discarded fish did not stay hidden for long. The snapper washed ashore at Westshore Beach, and a member of the public who noticed them alerted authorities. Fishery officers moved to inspect the vessel and found unreported fish still on board.
MPI district manager for Hawkes Bay Wairarapa, Mike Sutton, acknowledged the role the public tip-off played in bringing the case forward.
“We appreciate the call from the public about the fish washing up. It helped us work out which vessel had been operating in the area.”
Sutton said the conduct was not representative of the commercial fishing sector as a whole, but individual breaches still place pressure on a system designed to safeguard shared fish stocks.
"The majority of commercial fishers land and record what they catch. If they go over quota, they pay a fee or obtain more quota to cover their catch. These rules have been in place for many years, and there is no excuse for ignoring them."
The Quota Management System depends on accurate catch reporting to set sustainable harvest levels. Sutton said deliberately dumping fish or withholding catch data undermines that framework and puts shared fish stocks at risk.
“When there is clear evidence of offending, we take action. The rules only work if everyone plays their part.”
Inspecting officers also found that Wigmore had neither his fishing permit nor his certificate of registration on board St Kathryn at the time of the visit. Carrying both documents is a basic requirement for any commercial skipper.
