FWC Division of Law Enforcement Weekly Report from April 26 - May 2.
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The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Division of Law Enforcement Weekly Report from April 26 - May 2 includes incidents in the Lake Okeechobee area. This report represents some events the FWC handled over specified weeks; however, it does not include all actions taken by the Division of Law Enforcement.
• Officer Ciprich was patrolling the Moore Haven area when he observed a vehicle parked in front of a “No Trespassing” sign leading to a water management structure. Officer Ciprich found a group of people fishing in freshwater with a cast net. One subject was found to have a largemouth bass. The subject was issued a notice to appear for harvesting freshwater gamefish by illegal method and warnings were issued for the trespass violations.
• Officers Ciprich and Pridgen observed two subjects in Stormwater Treatment Area 5. The subjects were fishing with a cast net in freshwater. The STA is currently closed to public access and is always closed to fishing. The officers conducted a resource inspection and found a bass hidden on the bank. Further inspection revealed five largemouth bass, a bluegill, and a crappie harvested with the cast net, which is an illegal method of taking freshwater gamefish. The subjects were issued citations for no fishing licenses and issued a notice to appear for harvesting freshwater gamefish by illegal method.
• Officer Sellers was patrolling South Florida Water Management District Property on the L8 levee when she observed a vehicle illegally operating on the levee. She conducted a traffic stop to address the violation and during the investigation, she found the subject had been issued two warnings for the previous violation. The subject was issued a citation for the violation.
• Officer Wences observed a vehicle parked outside of a closed area at Stormwater Treatment Area 1 West. Upon further investigation, Officer Wences discovered the owner of the vehicle inside a closed area on the STA. The subject had entered where there was posted signage stating the area was closed to public access. The subject was cited accordingly.
• Officer Harris observed a pickup truck inside Stormwater Treatment Area 1 West beyond all the locked gates. During his investigation, Officer Harris discovered the subject accessed the area via a closed levee. Furthermore, the subject had several prior charges for trespassing on South Florida Water Management District land. The subject was cited for both violations regarding illegal entry/exit on SFWMD land and unauthorized vehicle on SFWMD land.
