Citations Issued for Poaching, Illegal Fishing, and Other Violations

As more people head outside for warm weather activities, Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) have remained busy protecting the state’s wildlife, fisheries, and public lands. The following individuals were recently cited for a variety of conservation law offenses in Maryland:

Police charged four Washington, D.C. men for illegally fishing striped bass in Dorchester County on May . An officer observed four individuals fishing and catching striped bass during prohibited hours and in a closed spawning area. The officer also observed them place the fish in a black trash bag and into a vehicle. While speaking with the men, the officer located a large black contractor trash bag containing 35 undersized striped bass. Ramiro Garibay, 39, Rafael Reyes, 40, and Roberto Rodriguez, 46, all received multiple charges and face up to $4,000 in fines. The fourth individual, Osbaldo Moreno, 36, was also charged with attempting to catch striped bass in a closed spawning area.

A Westminster man was charged with multiple counts of illegal dumping on public land, poaching, and falsifying records. In late April, police discovered a large pile of commercial debris dumped on the trail head of Patapsco Valley State Park in Howard County. Investigators say Matthew David Harig, 28, used a dump truck to unload debris in the area. According to police, Harig made several false statements while being interviewed and attempted to hinder the investigation by falsifying a landfill receipt. Officers also recognized Harig as the person on trail camera photos related to an ongoing criminal trespassing and illegal hunting investigation. A subsequent investigation revealed Harig had been trespassing to illegally hunt whitetail deer last year on posted land owned by the Maryland Police and Corrections Training Commission. Officers seized illegally harvested whitetail buck antlers and filed numerous charges against Harig.

NRP charged a Rockville man with trespassing and hunting on private land without permission. Michael McGlaughlin, 61, was charged May 22 after being spotted by officers and a search by the department’s K-9 unit found items belonging to him in the woods on posted property near Poolesville, Montgomery County. K-9 Rider conducted the search and found McGlaughlin’s shotgun, camouflage clothing, and other hunting gear along with McGlaughlin’s license in a pocket of camouflage pants. Police later found McGlaughlin at his residence and cited him. If convicted, he faces up to $2,000 in fines.

Officers on surveillance in Queen Anne’s County charged four men with numerous striped bass violations May 17 after seizing 16 undersized striped bass. Patrolling officers intercepted a recreational boat and saw two men throwing numerous striped bass overboard. The officer gathered the drifting fish drifting that had been thrown overboard and escorted the vessel back into the Kent Narrows Landing and charged Guillermo Correa, 43, of West Friendship, and Jesus Dubon Orellana, 41, David Morales, 36, and Alcides Villanueva-Pineda, 29, all of Laurel, with illegal possession of striped bass and fishing without required registration. Correa received additional citations for interference with state buoys, markers, or monuments, failure to obtain a boating safety education certificate, and failure to carry visual distress signals.

Three men were charged with illegally fishing striped bass at the Kent Narrows drawbridge May 26 in Queen Anne’s County. An officer on surveillance at about 11:30 p.m. saw three people fishing beneath and above the bridge, where signs are posted against trespassing and fishing. Police reported the men were catching undersized striped bass and hiding them in a nearby bush. As the men got into their car to leave, police conducted a conservation stop and located a black trash bag containing 23 undersized striped bass. Police confiscated the fish and charged Oswaldo Franco-Lopez, 36, of Baltimore, Gabry Verela-Padilla, 24, of Baltimore, and Cristian Rodriguez-Morales, 25, of Essex with illegally possessing striped bass, and violating time restriction of possessing striped bass while fishing. Lopez received an additional charge for criminal trespass.