The leader of a gang of illegal fishermen escaped prison and was only ordered to pay £1 in nominal fines after being found guilty of stealing £62,000 worth of salmon and trout.
The Swansea Crown Court judge said Friday he was “astonished” there was no jail time for the crime.
Emlyn Rees, 35, was caught after 20 years of illegal poaching, seven of which turned out to be a criminal.
He was captured by his own photos and diary of his prize catches.
Bricklayer Rees was tracked down after an illegal net was set up to catch salmon and sea trout.
Emlyn Rees, 35, looted over £60,000 worth of trout and salmon – and was fined £1
Rees’ poaching gang was accused of looting the waters of the River Teifi in West Wales – and has seen salmon stocks plummet from 4,342 to 1,197 since 2005.
A “poaching diary” of a log of dates, photos of the gang next to their catches and fishing records dating back 20 years was found in his home by bailiffs.
During a search of Rees’s property, bailiffs seized nets, bags, ropes and two freezers filled with fish.
The court heard it made Rees about £61,751 but the money is gone.
The court heard that he is awaiting surgery and on benefits because he cannot work as a bricklayer.
Rees, of Cenarth, Carmarthenshire, had pleaded guilty to eight charges related to the illegal handling of salmon by Haverfordwest Magistrates – and was sent to Swansea Crown Court for punishment.
Rees (left) is pictured with fellow anglers Matthew Phillips and Dafydd Rees
His honorary judge PH Thomas QC fined him £1,600 and awarded him the nominal amount of £1 in compensation for his proceeds of crime – saying: ‘I can imagine members of the public will question that .’
“It is certainly not the case that the court is giving him a license. It is an admission that the court has not been able to identify any assets.’
Swansea Crown Court heard he couldn’t be sent to jail – because there is no custody order for poaching.
“It is surprising that there is no custodial option,” Judge Thomas said. “If it had, there’s a good chance I would have opted for that deprivation of liberty.”
Judge Thomas fined Rees £200 for each offense totaling £1,600. He also awarded the cost of £1,000.
“You’ve been a persistent salmon and sewing machine poacher for many years,” he said. ‘You had major consequences for the fish stock in the river.
“Unfortunately, I have no authority to detain and can only impose a fine. However, I take this very seriously.
“I can only pay you what you can afford. I have some doubts about what you say about your resources, but I can only pay you what you can afford over the course of two years.
“I can only command you to pay an amount that is affordable in cost. There is also a crime filing proceeds of over £60,000. I can only impose a fee of £1 on you.’
Prosecutor Jon Tarron said: “Emlyn Rees was undoubtedly the control factor in this large-scale poaching.
“For more than two decades, others have all been involved at different scales.”
His wave of fishing crime was halted when bailiffs spotted a man in dark clothes walking across the fields at 5 a.m. with a large backpack.
He was seen pulling a net from the river and removing trout.
A court heard that Rees fled the scene by jumping into the river at Cenarth, West Wales, in an attempt to escape river patrol.
But he was later arrested – and a search of his home uncovered the rest of the 20-year-old poaching gang.
During a search of his property, bailiffs seized nets, bags, ropes and two freezers filled with fish.
“The damage of surgery like this is painfully obvious,” Mr Tarron said.
After the case, Gavin Bown of Natural Resources Wales said: ‘The impact of this illegal fishing on the Teifi, other waterways and coastal waters cannot be underestimated.
“These have wreaked havoc on salmon and sea trout stocks and severely hampered the future prospects for stocks of these iconic species.
“Their actions negate the results and benefits that would otherwise come from investment by responsible river users and from public funds.”
“I would like to thank our dedicated team of enforcement officers, whose detailed and persistent investigations have uncovered an astonishing extent of crime.