Mattapoisett Harbormaster Jill Simmons sensed something fishy on Wednesday, May 18, while giving a hand to a boater who was having a hard time backing up his trailer to the boat ramp.
Following her gut, her hunch led to the arrest of Belmiro Baptista, 65, of Pawtucket, Rhode Island for poaching sea bass.
“We got to talking,” said Simmons. “I asked him how the fishing was and he said it wasn’t that good and he only got five or six sea bass.”
Hmm, thought Simmons.
Baptista said he had a commercial saltwater fishing license, but Simmons wasn’t certain if it was even the legal season for commercial sea bass fishing. So she excused herself and phoned the Environmental Police. They told her commercial sea bass season wasn’t until August 1, and recreational sea bass season didn’t start until the following Saturday, May 28.
“So I said to him, how many bass did you get?” This time Baptista replied, “Eight,” Simmons said. “So we went from five to eight…”
Another check showed Baptista had been cited four times in the past 12 months for illegal catches.
“[The Environmental Police] came down and they’re the ones who have the authority to tear the boat apart,” said Simmons.
She said some of the fish were covered by clothes and trawling gear on the deck, which raised suspicions that there could be more on board.
“When they opened up the door to the cabin, I heard them say, ‘Whoa! We hit the mother lode!’”
According to Simmons and the Massachusetts Environmental Police, Baptista had caught exactly 153 sea bass, with 75 of them below the 15-inch size minimum. The legal limit of a sea bass catch is five sea bass.
Baptista was placed under arrest for failing to display the fish on demand, possession of undersized sea bass, possession of over the limit of sea bass, possession of sea bass in a closed season, and no saltwater permit.
Simmons said Baptista will likely have his commercial fishing license revoked as well.
Baptista will be arraigned on June 27 at Wareham Superior Court.
By Jean Perry