Coden seafood business owner pleads guilty to conspiracy involving illegally harvested fish

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) – A Coden seafood business owner pleaded guilty Wednesday to a conspiracy to buy and sell illegally harvested fish.

Richard Michael Collier Jr., who owns P.J.’s Seafood, entered his plea in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act. The 1900 conservation law regulates fish, wildlife and plants. He admitted the market value of the fish sold across state lines from May 2019 to April 2022 was between $250,000 and $550,000.

A judge set Collier’s sentencing for February. The maximum penalty is five years in prison, although prosecutors have agreed to recommend leniency. Under the plea bargain, Collier agreed to surrender his Alabama gill netting license and refrain from operating a business involved in the sale of seafood except for oysters.

Collier’s written plea agreement indicates that the conspiracy involved redfish and speckled trout caught in Alabama and Mississippi in violation of those states’ laws.

It is illegal to catch those fish in Alabama, and Mississippi requires commercial fishermen to complete Mississippi trip tickets, which helps the state monitor the health of fisheries. Collier admitted that he falsified trip ticket information, including the quantity and location of the fish that were caught.

Agents from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the Alabama Marine Police conducted surveillance on the P.J.’s Seafood loading area to monitor fish sales. According to court records, they found speckled trout and redfish hidden in compartments and then sold to Collier, according to the plea agreement. The surveillance also indicated that some of the boats had gill nets, which ae banned in Alabama for harvesting game fish.

The plea document states that on certain days, GPS data revealed that fishermen were in Mobile Bay on dates when the Mississippi trip tickets indicated they were in that state.

The plea agreement documents thousands of pounds of illegally harvested game fish that P.J.’s Seafood illegally purchased and then sold to interstate distributors. Those included businesses in Thomasville, Georgia, Pensacola and Theodore.

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