Two commercial fishers have been fined after a surveillance aircraft found them fishing in a closed area near Hay River.
The federal government says William Michell and Nancy Michel were spotted in their vessel, Shadow, in an area closed to commercial fishing in July 2014.
An investigation followed, leading to a total of five charges against the pair.
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Both pleaded guilty to commercial fishing during the closed season and obstructing a fishery officer, while Michel also admitted failing to comply with a condition of her fishing licence – which has been suspended until the end of March.
Fines were handed down in territorial court last week. Michell’s fine totalled $1,000 while Michel must pay $3,000.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada says some areas of Great Slave Lake are kept closed to commercial fishing to protect stocks of inconnu, which are closely related to whitefish.
