Paua poachers caught in night raid

A sting on poachers at a Hawke's Bay marine reserve netted three men with nearly 100 paua between them.

The sting, at Te Angi Angi Marine Reserve at Blackhead Beach, 30km east of Waipukurau, was carried out by the Conservation Department, Fisheries Ministry and police.

It was triggered by information received about people taking seafood from the reserve at night.

About 11.30pm on March 2 a quad bike with its headlights off was seen approaching the reserve from the north. It was travelling quietly and slowly.

Three hours later the vehicle was stopped by fisheries officers as it left the reserve, still with its lights off. There were three Hastings men on it – Ngahiti Waerea, 25, unemployed, Wayne Waerea, 36, shearing contractor, and Thompson Hokianga, 29, shearer.

A bag strapped to the vehicle's front carrier contained 97 blackfoot paua, 15 of which were undersize. The legal limit is 10 paua per person. The minimum legal size for blackfoot paua is 125mm.

Fisheries officers put the paua inside the marine reserve.

The men appeared in Hastings District Court yesterday, where they pleaded guilty to taking fish in contravention of the Fisheries Act.

Crown prosecutor Steve Manning told the court each man had a screwdriver but no other dive gear and only their legs were wet.

"The majority of legal-size paua in this area are found in deep waters which require the appropriate dive gear or they are found within the marine reserve," Mr Manning said.

However, the men denied taking the paua from the reserve. Their lawyer, Peter Nee Harland, said they had told the fisheries officers they had a customary fishing permit, but had been unable to produce it at the time.

They produced it days later but it was in the wrong format and was rendered invalid, Mr Nee Harland said.

Judge Tony Adeane said the men were "grossly in excess" of the bag limit of 10 paua, but it would remain "merely a suspicion" that the paua had come from the reserve. He fined each man $500 and ordered them to pay court costs of $130. The Suzuki quad bike was confiscated by Fisheries.

Another man in court yesterday pleaded guilty to taking paua from Te Angi Angi Marine Reserve. Toa Kupa, 20, took 31 paua on January 30. Judge Adeane fined Kupa $750 and ordered him to pay court costs of $130.

MARINE RESERVES

These areas are managed by the Conservation Department to protect New Zealand's unique and representative marine habitats and species for the future.

There are 17 marine reserves.

The status is the strongest legal protection available to the marine environment.

Te Angi Angi Marine Reserve was established in August 1997.

It covers approximately 1.3 square nautical miles, which is approximately 446 hectares, extending 1 nautical mile (1.85 kilometres) offshore from mean high water mark between Blackhead and Aramoana beaches.

- © Fairfax NZ News