Cork man pleads guilty to fishing without a licence and obstructing a fisheries officer

The defendant was convicted and fined for both offences

The court heard the accused had been fishing for 55 years and was well known in the area and this was the first time he had ever been prosecuted for breaching fishing regulations. File photo

A fisherman who had put his boat back in the water before receiving the proper fishing licence pleaded guilty to two charges related to the incident in the district court.

Solicitor acting for the Director of Public Prosecutions, Darragh Healy, told Skibbereen District Court that 70-year-old Jeremiah O’Neill from Union Hall, Co Cork, was pleading guilty to one count of fishing without a licence and one count of obstructing a fisheries officer. The court was told a third charge of not maintaining a log book would be taken into consideration by agreement.

Giving evidence, Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) fisheries protection officer, Gary Hannon, said he was on patrol at sea with a colleague on September 13, 2024, about half a mile offshore south of Union Hall when they came upon O’Neill fishing aboard the Mairead. Mr Hannon said O’Neill had no licence to fish but had a box of crab in the boat and 40 pots aboard the vessel.

Mr Hannon said O’Neill was asked to haul in a second line of another 40 pots while he checked his licensing details. The court was told O’Neill hauled in the pots and also discarded the crabs he had on board back into the sea. 

Mr Hannon said O’Neill had effectively thrown the evidence overboard and he could not ascertain how much was caught illegally which gave rise to the obstruction charge.

Defence solicitor, Liam O’Donovan, said O’Neill fished for lobster and crab as the skipper of the small vessel Mairead that was owned by his nephew. He said O’Neill had been fishing for 55 years and was well known in the area and this was the first time he had ever been prosecuted for breaching fishing regulations.

The court heard O’Neill had been sent to prison on unrelated matters and had only been released shortly before the incident. Mr O’Donovan said this was O’Neill’s “first venture” fishing since his release and the boat had needed work to get it up to standard again. 

He said a license application had been submitted that day and was granted a week later and O’Neill had been “overzealous” in his haste to get back on the water.

The court heard O’Neill now had all the proper licences in place and was in receipt of a state pension of about €300 per week. Judge Joanne Carrol accepted O’Neill was “not acting in total disrespect of the law” given that he had applied for the licence. 

She said it was “very serious in an island nation to be fishing without a licence” and the obstruction issue made the situation worse.

For fishing without a licence O’Neill was convicted, fined €250 and given four months to pay the fine. For obstructing a fisheries officer he was convicted, fined €450 and given six months to pay the fine.

Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.