Two caught on suspicion of illegally fishing a River Dee tributary for Salmon

Fisheries enforcement officers from Natural Resources Wales (NRW) have been carrying out extra patrols on rivers across the country as part of their work to tackle illegal fishing.

The extra patrols have already paid off in North Wales, last week NRW officers apprehended two men suspected of illegally fishing for salmon.

The duo were caught after officers spotted a car parked near a small tributary of the River Dee which is a popular spawning stream for salmon.

After officers searched the car and discovered a dead male salmon and a gaff, the police were called and the two men were cautioned and the items confiscated.

Investigations into the incident are ongoing, the exact location hasn’t been disclosed by NRW officers.

Matt Roberts, Environmental Crime Team Leader for NRW said:

“We take all illegal activity on our rivers extremely seriously and this is especially true of illegal fishing

“Given the challenges facing salmon stock numbers currently, every salmon taken out of season represents another blow to our efforts to protect these iconic fish.

“While our patrols act as a deterrent to illegal fishing, we have limited resources and so we increasingly rely on an intelligence-led approach to help tackle this problem.

“If you see any suspicious or illegal activity then please report it to the NRW incident hotline on 0300 065 3000.”