Two men fined $2K each for illegal baitfish sales in northern Ont.

An Ontario man and a Quebec resident have each been fined $2,000 for their part in the illegal sale of baitfish in 2021, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF).

In a news release Friday, the ministry said Adam Mujanovic of Lucknow, Ont., pleaded guilty to failing to comply with the conditions of his commercial baitfish licence and was fined $2,000.

Geoffroy Giroux of Rouyn-Noranda, Que. Was also fined $2,000 after pleading guilty to failing to stop for a conservation officer, unlawfully buying baitfish for commercial purposes and unlawfully possessing more than 120 baitfish.

Justice Monique Mechefske heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice in North Bay, on Jan. 23.

The court heard that on Feb. 8, 2021, a conservation officer heading off on a snowmobile patrol of Lake Nipissing when he observed an individual transferring Emerald Shiners from one vehicle to a container in another.

“Giroux saw the conservation officer and tried to evade him and was subsequently arrested,” the MNRF said in the release.

“Giroux did not have a licence to commercially buy or sell baitfish in Ontario.”

Conservation officials seized 21,600 shiners during the incident.

Later, the court heard that Mujanovic – who sold Giroux the shiners – failed to follow several conditions of his licence.

These conditions are put in place to ensure diseases are not transmitted to other fish through the use of baitfish, said the MNRF.

To report a natural resource problem or provide information about an unsolved case, call the ministry TIPS line toll-free at 1-877-847-7667 or contact Crime Stoppers anonymously.

For more information about unsolved cases, click here.