On March 9, 2017 three St. Bernard Parish fishermen pled guilty to commercial oyster fishing violations.
Tyler Campo, 24, of St. Bernard, Brian Cocchiara, 24, of Chalmette, and Nathan Molinary, 20, of Violet, pled guilty to one count each of unlawfully taking oysters from unleased state water bottoms and taking oysters during illegal hours.
Judge Kim Jones ordered the men to pay a fine of $800 each and serve 120 days in jail suspended. The men can also only harvest oysters from a vessel that is equipped with a vessel monitoring system that is accessible to Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) agents. The oyster dredge that was seized was also forfeited to the state.
LDWF agents initially cited the men on Aug. 9, 2016 when they observed the men dredging for oysters in an area where they did not have permission and one hour before legal harvest was set to begin.
Prosecuting the case were members of District Attorney Perry Nicosia’s office. Case agents were Lt. Adam Young and Sgt. Jason Gernados.