Poached for Profit More than 26,000 pounds of illegally harvested reef fish, $178,107 in illegal sales, and FIVE sea turtles harvested and sold to undercover investigators. These are some of the findings of Operation Stolen Waters – Poached for Profit – a four-year FWC investigation into an organized illegal commercial fishing ring operating in the Gulf of America. Our investigators found that the subjects repeatedly illegally harvested and sold commercial quantities of reef fish – mostly red snapper and gag grouper – outside of the legal Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) catch-share reporting system. Using nighttime offloads, private residences, and on-the-water transfers, the subjects went to great lengths to evade law enforcement and cheat the system. Three of the subjects even harvested protected marine sea turtles on multiple occasions, selling three adults and two hatchlings to undercover FWC investigators! All marine sea turtles are protected; it is illegal to take, possess, or harass them. Thankfully, our investigators released the sea turtles unharmed. This investigation resulted in 10 subjects facing several felony charges, including Racketeering, Conspiracy to Commit Racketeering, Unlawful possession or sale of Marine Turtles, Unlawful Use of a two-way communication device, and Cheating. The actions of this criminal organization negatively impacted the fishery, the industry, and all Floridians. Thank you to our investigators, analysts, partner agencies, and @AGJamesUthmeier's OAG Office of the Statewide Prosecution for their tireless work and dedication in bringing these poaching fraudsters to justice. More details: bit.ly/ICYMI-PoachingandIlle…