Anchorage, Alaska – Acting United States Attorney Kevin Feldis announced today that an Oregon man was indicted by a federal grand jury in Anchorage on six counts of fishing in one regulatory area and then falsely reporting the fish were caught in a different regulatory area.

On December 16, 2011, Freddie Joe Hankins, 46, a resident of Cove, Oregon, was named in the six-count indictment as the sole defendant in the case.

According to the indictment, in 2006 and 2007, Hankins made three separate fishing trips where he was an Individual Fishing Quota ( IFQ) permit holder on board the F/V Kamilar for both sablefish and halibut where he fished in one regulatory area and falsely reported he had fished in another regulatory area. The approximate wholesale value of the fish Hankins reported falsely is $158,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Aunnie Steward, who presented the case to the grand jury, indicated that the law provides for a maximum total sentence of five years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under federal sentencing statutes, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

The National Oceans and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Law Enforcement conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Source: USDOJ-Alaska