Three Northern Ontario men have been fined a total of $1,250 for ice fishing offences on Lake Nipissing.
Yves Laframboise of Sturgeon Falls pleaded guilty and was fined $1,000 for allowing four walleye to spoil. He also got a one-year fishing licence suspension.
Mark Violette of St. Charles and Ernest Sohm of Hanmer pleaded guilty and were each fined $125 for catching and retaining one undersized walleye each. In addition, they received a one-year fishing licence suspension.
Court heard that on March 13, 2016, conservation officers watched Violette and Sohm each catching an undersized walleye on Lake Nipissing. The two fish were placed in a pile containing two other walleye.
When conservation officers approached on snowmobiles, Laframboise tossed the four fish in an ice fishing hole and pushed them below the ice surface using a slush scoop. The fish had been on the ice in excess of 45 minutes.
Officers were unable to recover the fish.
On Lake Nipissing, there is a minimum size limit for walleye for recreational anglers with a zero possession limit of walleye less than 46 centimetres (18 inches) in length.
