Illegal Fish Landings

[Guest Anonymous]

its totally bizzare how it works , all of it , folk squeezed by fat cats in grey suits who do deals on the quiet. Real working folk risking life n limb , gambling everything on boats to catch fish and in return they get persecuted by 2 layers of govt and brussels , dream world regulations and constantly bein squeezed out of business. Unless you're spanish of course. Landing fish for cash is likely wrong , but is it really worse as the "legalised" fraud in westminster n big business ?

[bug]

Fleabea - as the fish would say - it's getting caught that's the problem

[roadrunner]

I Agree Blackfish landings is wrong so is throwing undersize fish back into sea . They are dead when they are squashed up in the net so why not give them free of charge to local hospitals or some other deserving cause . Has anyone ever noticed the increasing amount of crabs / lobsters that are cought in creels with one or more claws missing ? They are mostly undersized and the greedy fisherman takes the claws home to eat leaving the shellfish with no crusher claw to crack its food or defend itself !!!!!!

 

Keedle i have never heard so much S**t in my life. I don't know any fisherman that would that would throw a lobster back unless it was undersize, an if undersize then the claws would be so small you would not get anything to eat from it. If you were a fisherman you would know this, and if you creeling i doubt you have a license.

[Guest Anonymous]

one way of enforcing the law for working folk n a different one for them in offices, apparently a good old saying

[KTL]

Presumably the amount of money involved in this "alleged" fraud is huge. Millions rather than thousands. Those accused are skippers and factory bosses, hardly big time gangsters. But the pellagic industry is international, and may well involve folk with more, "diverse" businees interests. Some less savoury than others.

The problem for any fraud, is "how and where do you hide the money so you get some of it back". I think the technical description is money laundering. Who needs to launder money? Mainly big time criminals like drug dealers and arms dealers, and illegal organisations with needs for large amounts of untracable money.

If any fraud took place involving Shetland, perpetuators, and the professionals, friends and aquintences who advised them, would be dealing in pretty murkey waters with some very dodgy characters.

So remove any concept of "local fishermen" from the equation and you have a very serious trial taking place.

Most fraud trials collapse becase they are very difficult, and very expensive to investigate. The bigger the sums involved, the less likely a prosecution will even be attempted.

The Altaire trail took place at High Court. This trial is taking place at the Sherrif court, so is likely to be at the lower end of things.

I make make no coment on the guilt or innocence of those involved.

[Guest Anonymous]

er, how many drug dealers , arms dealers and terrorists have been caught wi this legislation ? maybe none. Maybe its a bit late to catch Mark Thatcher now. Maybe its laws brought in to hammer taxes off others, by them that dont want to pay tax themselves i.e. claiming for cons

[Guest Raven007]

whats your opinion on the latest charges ?

 

(***Mod Edit - Merged with existing topic***)

[paulb]

after spending four years investigating you would hope they knew what they were doing. how many millions did it cost and what is the outcome going to be a fine.

[Ghostrider]

whats your opinion on the latest charges ?

 

Probably much the same as the initial ones.

 

http://www.shetlink.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=9363

 

(***Mod - Now merged thanks***)

[Gorgonzola Butt-cheese]

Agree with ghost rider on this one , the common fisheries policy has ruined many fishermen and many a fish stock.

[Guest Anonymous]

westminster/holyrood doesna want us to have anything, no industries at all ,no fishing, nothing, just taxes , and then what do they do wi the taxes? defraud it amongst themselves wi little or no prosecutions at all

[paulb]

what has goverment policy got to do with fishing fraud.

 

this fraud has reduced the qouta for the honest fishermen. so innocents have been hurt.

should they get away with it what message would that give. what fish would be left if they could catch what they wanted.

[Guest Anonymous]

well what message has a scamming government given the fishermen? or any body else? nobody worse as them that thats running it all

[Seaflech]

There's no such thing as good fraud or bad fraud. Whether you're an MP claiming for a new duck house or a fisherman illegally landing fish, rules is rules as they say, and if you step outside of them you can expect to be dealt with.

 

Fleabee, you keep making reference to the case of the politicians and the expenses scandal and how it is far worse than the fishing case, but if you look at 389 MP's having to pay back £1.1 million, as opposed to (so far) seven people being investigated for £50 million - it puts a rather different slant on it.

 

I think in both cases, be it politicians or pelagic fishermen, the fraud involved simply boils down to sheer greed.

[Guest Anonymous]

of course it does sea flech, both professions (politics & fishing) are all about just that , make a killing while the goings good. Likewise both will be hovvering about the line drawn by rules, and both know to capitalise on the peaks. Now, one is supposed to be setting the example !!