Fishing master pleads guilty to under-recording of fish catches. On 11th December 2025, the Master of fishing vessel ‘Margaret Katie’, Noel O’ Sullivan, with an address in Co. Cork, pleaded guilty, at Bantry District Court, to an offence of under-recording catches of Haddock in the fishing logbook. The offence was detected during an inspection by SFPA, Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority Officers at Castletownbere Port in March 2024.
On 08th January 2026, at Bantry District Court, the Court heard evidence that during an inspection of the landing of whitefish catches from the vessel, the stowage plan onboard the vessel did not contain a box count of catches onboard. Officers were provided with a log of the fish boxes onboard which, along with the logbook, was cross checked against the quantities of catch offloaded. Evidence was given that the Sea-Fisheries Protection Officer was informed offload was complete however, the officer subsequently detected 61 boxes of Haddock located behind stacked empty boxes and which had not been declared. The Court heard this amounted to a mis-recording of Haddock in the fishing logbook by 57%. Evidence was given on the need for accurate fishing data and of the adverse impact of under-recording on quotas.
The Court proceeded to impose a fine of €750 and commented that there was a “big onus to comply with all requirements” as “fish is a very valuable and treasured commodity” and a “valuable resource in the food chain”.
A SFPA spokesperson commented:
“The SFPA notes the decision of the Court. Accurate recording of catches in EU waters is key to supporting sustainable quota management to avoid depletion of stocks and to protect future fishing opportunities for coastal communities, in addition to the support of conservation of marine resources. The SFPA commends the Sea-Fisheries Protection Officers involved in this case for their investigation.”