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Trawler skipper fined over illegal fish              17/8/14

 

An east coast skipper who illegally landed a haul of haddock caught off the Western Isles has been fined a total of £1,300 when his case was called in court this week.

 

Micheal Taylor of 12 Sanday Road, Aberdeen, previously admitted landing the catch at Scrabster in December.

 

The 42-year-old skipper of the Banff-registered MFV Aquarius, BF89, also pleaded guilty to falsifying records in an attempt to conceal the sea area where the haddock was caught.

 

Taylor claimed the fish was netted in the North Sea fishing zone but the trawler was actually some 30 miles north west of the Butt of Lewis in the neighbouring area.

 

Sheriff David Sutherland fined him £500 for the illegal landing and £800 for doctoring the boat’s records.

The fine would have been £650 higher but Taylor received a discount for his early guilty plea.