Stephenville -
Christopher Reginald Keough, 21, has pleaded guilty to several fisheries related charges after allegedly netting Crabbes River in late August.
He was absent from court on Monday as he is in Ontario; however, his mother appearing on his behalf said he wanted to enter the guilty plea. The charges include unlawfully jigging or netting fish and possession of untagged salmon.
Judge Jacqueline Jenkins said she would need something in writing from the accused to enter the guilty plea and set a date of Jan. 11, 2010 at 9:30 a.m. for facts and sentencing.
Meanwhile, the other man alleged to have been involved in the same incident, Adam Wayne Leroy, 19, also appeared Monday.
His charges include five counts of unlawfully possessing or selling fish; a charge of catching and retaining or possessing fish outside of length limit; a charge of possession of untagged salmon; unlawfully possessing a net in inland waters; two counts of breaking and entering and committing offence; unlawfully operating an all terrain vehicle on a highway or railway; unlawfully operating an all terrain vehicle without wearing a helmet; failure to obey a signal or direction of a peace officer; and a breach of act and/or regulations.
Leroy is set to return to court at 9:30 a.m. on Jan. 11, 2010.
According to Brent Watkins, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans' conservation and protection supervisor based in Stephenville, reports of salmon rivers in western Newfoundland being netted by poachers had been increasing in August and DFO was working hard to catch those believed to be involved.
That effort proved successful when the two individuals were apprehended for allegedly stringing a net across the Big Turn section of the Crabbes River, which flows into the Gulf of St. Lawrence from southwestern Newfoundland.
The net contained seven salmon, six of which measured between 69 and 79 centimetres.
"The legal retention size for Atlantic salmon is 63 centimetres, meaning these were mostly large salmon which hold the most eggs for reproduction," Watkins said of the size of the fish caught up in the net.
The seventh salmon was just below the legal limit, measuring in at 59 centimetres. A small rainbow trout was also found in the net.
