Game and Fish officers recently conducted law enforcement sweeps at six east valley and five west valley Urban Fishing lakes, resulting in 18 citations.

On May 3, the same day as catfish stockings, two Wildlife Manager teams checked licenses and bag limits of more than 200 anglers. Violation rates at the eleven lakes ranged from 0 percent to more than 35 percent. Tickets were written for fishing without a license, exceeding the bag limit (four catfish), fishing with two poles without a two pole stamp, and giving false information to a police officer.

A patient and persistent officer monitored fishermen at Kiwanis Lake and nabbed an angler taking an overlimit of catfish and hiding extra fish in a vehicle. Court fines will be determined in the weeks ahead, but they generally run $80 for fishing without a license and at least $60 and up for overlimit violations, depending on the number of excess fish. If you observe ongoing fishing violations, please call Operation Game Thief (OGT) 24/7 at 1-800-352-0700. The phone number is printed on all hunting and fishing licenses. Dispatchers will notify local Wildlife Managers to respond to the situation. Reward money is available and callers can remain anonymous.   back...