A fisherman was fined $3,500 in Magistrates’ Court for having more than one black grouper on his boat.

Tehon Fox, 28, admitted the offence, which he initially denied, when he appeared in court last Friday.

Members of the Royal Bermuda Regiment Coastguard spoke to Fox as he approached them aboard his commercial vessel, Calculated Risk, on August 22, 2024, the court heard.

Troops seized a black grouper that Fox threw into the water and found another in his cooler once he docked at Ordnance Island.

The Fisheries Regulations 2010 prohibit fishermen from catching more than one black grouper, a protected species, within a 24-hour period.

Magistrate Craig Attridge fined Fox $3,500 for the offence.

Prosecutors offered no evidence on a charge that Fox took fish from the northeastern restricted area, also on August 22.

Taneka King, from the Department of Public Prosecutions, told The Royal Gazette that prosecutors plan to pursue “much larger fines exceeding $6,000” in the future.

To prevent rapid overfishing and population crash, no fishing is permitted on black grouper spawning sites between April 15 and November 30.

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