The damages caused by the man are preliminarily assessed at over 650,000 UAH. He faces up to three years of restriction of liberty.

This morning, during a joint patrol near the village of Kalagliy, officers from the Odesa District Police's Water Police Sector and border guards discovered a 24-year-old resident of the Ovidiopol community illegally retrieving prohibited fishing gear and unlawful catch. The man did not have permits for fishing activities.

A responding investigative group from the local police unit seized as evidence the fisherman’s suit, two nets totaling 200 meters, and 287 fish weighing a total of 180 kilograms, including: herring, carp, bream, crucian carp, perch, roach, flounder, and asp. For the duration of the pre-trial investigation, all items have been transferred to a specialized storage facility.

According to preliminary calculations by experts, the illegal actions of the fisherman caused damages to the state amounting to over 650,000 UAH.

The territorial police investigators have recorded the information in the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations under Part 1 of Article 249 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which pertains to illegal fishing if it caused significant harm. A judicial and environmental expert examination has been appointed to determine the exact amount of damage caused to the state. After conducting the necessary investigative actions and obtaining the expert opinion, a decision will be made regarding the notification of suspicion to the subject. He faces up to three years of restriction of liberty.

The investigation continues under the procedural guidance of the Chornomorsk District Prosecutor's Office.

Police urge citizens to be responsible, comply with the laws, and protect nature.

Reminder: Since April, the annual spring-summer spawning ban on the extraction of aquatic biological resources has commenced in the water bodies of Odesa region. Specifically, in the Dniester Liman with its floodplains, it will last until July 31 (the ban does not apply to specialized herring fishing).