An Ontario man has been fined $1,000 for making a false statement to obtain a B.C. Resident Angler fishing licence.
In a Facebook release Friday (March 4) night, the B.C. Conservation Officer Service (COS) said the man was caught fishing on the Bulkley River without a valid licence during an angling patrol last fall.
“A subsequent check of his angling licence history showed he had been purchasing B.C. resident angling licences for years despite not being a B.C. resident,” the COS statement said.
Last week, the man pleaded guilty in Smithers court to knowingly making a false statement to obtain a licence.
Conservation officers routinely patrol area rivers and lakes for all kinds of infractions of the province’s freshwater fishing regulations.
Currently, in addition to permanent regulations, there is a ban on bait fishing on the Skeena and its tributaries, including the Bulkley and Telkwa Rivers effective until June 15.