PUNTA GORDA, Fla. — The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission arrested a Punta Gorda man on Tuesday, after officers said he stole blue crab traps on the Peace River.
FWC said Philip Heuman, 69, was arrested Dec. 2 at the Laishley Park Boat Ramp after FWC said officers found five stolen commercial blue crab traps on his boat.
FWC said the traps belonged to three different licensed commercial crabbers.
According to FWC, a commercial fisherman reported the crime, after another fisherman on the water witnessed the traps being taken.
Heuman booked into jail, and faces three counts of commercial crab trap theft and three counts of molestation of commercial crab traps.
FWC said crimes involving illegal harvesting and gear theft undermine the state’s commercial fishing industry and threaten the sustainability of blue crab populations.
The agency urges anyone who witnesses suspicious or illegal activity on the water to contact its Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922).
