Piles of crab pots seized in DFW blitz

Three DFW boats, 13 enforcement officers, two biologists and two Lummi fisheries officers swept along the U.S. Canada line in Boundary Bay on November 16 seizing Canadian crabbing gear illegally set in U.S. waters. Mullins said half the gear was left from a major seizure November 7, in which DFW and Canadian fisheries officers collaborated to seize three vessels and arrest six Canadian crabbers in U.S. waters. The balance of the seized gear had at least seven other unique buoy numbers from vessels enforcement officers had not contacted.

Mullins said it was the biggest one-day seizure of gear he could recall, but the problem of Canadian crabbers slipping across the line is not new. “There’s a lot of incentive for them to fish in U.S. waters if they’re fished out in their waters in Boundary Bay,” he said. “It’s a yearly problem. They figure it’s the cost of doing business.”

At about $50 a pot, including rigging, the cost of gear seized last week would be $27,500.

Back to Top