Oyster smuggler stopped with massive shellfish haul, say Md. officials
EASTON, Md. - It's a very Maryland problem - oyster poaching. CBS Baltimore reports that officers with the state Dept. of Natural Resources say they've made one of the largest oysters busts in years, seizing thousands of pounds of undersized shellfish being smuggled out of state.
Investigators say it all started with a tip about someone poaching a massive amount of oysters from Chesapeake Bay.
They pulled over a tractor-trailer from Coward Seafood along Route 50 in Easton. When they inspected it, they say they found 188 bushels - perhaps more than 40,000 oysters.Seventeen officers worked for seven hours to measure every single oyster inside the truck.
“Out of those 188 bushels, 187 did not comply with Maryland cull law,” said one officer.
According to CBS Baltimore, the Chesapeake Bay is facing a serious oyster shortage, with numbers at just one percent of historic levels.
One of the biggest reasons for the shortage
is over-harvesting by poachers.
“In 1868, the Natural Resources Police were created specifically to combat the oyster wars,” said Major Jerry Kirkwood,.
Natural Resources police are now using a sophisticated network of cameras and radar units to track illegal harvesters to try to help replenish the oyster population.
Daily limits have been set for oystermen. Officials say this latest illegal haul is equal to the daily limit of 16 oystermen, totaling more than $8,000.
The driver in this case, 66-year-old Rhoderick Newman, faces multiple poaching charges, and potentially tens of thousands of dollars in fines.
The undersized oysters were returned to an Eastern Shore sanctuary.