Multiple fishers have been netted by Department of Primary Industries (DPI) fisheries officers in recent weeks just south of Nambucca.
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During a night patrol on the Macleay River, officers apprehended a commercial fisher and another man allegedly using two meshing nets unlawfully.
The fisher was fined $3000 for possessing fish taken illegally, unlawfully using meshing nets and breaching a condition of his endorsement.
The second man was fined $500 for assisting a commercial fisher in contravening a share management plan.
Fisheries officers seized a 143-metre meshing net and five mulloway weighing 42 kilograms. The meshing net was retained as evidence and the fish were later sold.
Meanwhile, further down river, a 68-year-old man had a cast net seized after it was found hidden under the false floor of his boat. The man will receive a fine for possessing prohibited fishing gear. The cast net was retained as evidence.