Cheating scandal rocks professional fishing world

[GoCommiesGo]

In Annapolis, the local tackle / hunting store does a Snakehead tournament every year. 

The entry fee is $175.00, the first place payout this year was $6,375.00, this is at a small local store. Below is an excerpt from this years rules.

 

Quote

After careful consideration and discussion, Anglers management has decided to implement a mandatory polygraph test for the 1st place winner of the Monster Snakehead Hunt. The 1st place winner will be required to pass the polygraph test before collecting the cash prize of $6,375. We believe that this decision is necessary to ensure that all participants are following the rules that they received and signed for upon registering for the tournament. These rules are also posted at anglerssportcenter.com/monster-snakehead-hunt. This decision will ensure that the tournament is fair for everyone who is participating, and the policy will remain in effect for all future Monster Snakehead Hunt tournaments.

 

The bigger tournaments are serious business and can have massive prizes. 

[Cooked Crack]

Wrong thread

Edited October 4, 2022 by Cooked Crack

[Renegade7]

Disappointed, I am...

 

 

[CobraCommander]

Lie Detector tests? Just cut them open and eat them for Christ's sake. It's a couple of fish in a stocked lake. 

[CobraCommander]

 

This is a picture of a 4k lumen flashlight through someones hand. 100 Bucks, I bet I could see a lead weight in a fish. 

[tshile]

3 hours ago, GoCommiesGo said:

The bigger tournaments are serious business and can have massive prizes. 

I have an uncle that was a pro fisherman

 

he funded his entire life fishing. Got a new boat every year for free as part of a sponsorship, and much of his equipment was free. So he basically just banked the prize money. And was good enough to afford living like that his entire life. 
 

it’s not a bad gig if you like fishing and are good at it. 

[GoCommiesGo]

Just now, tshile said:

I have an uncle that was a pro fisherman

 

he funded his entire life fishing. Got a new boat every year for free as part of a sponsorship, and much of his equipment was free. So he basically just banked the prize money. And was good enough to afford living like that his entire life. 
 

it’s not a bad gig if you like fishing and are good at it. 

I've been a boating my entire life, mainly sail though. We just picked up a little 22' dual console this summer and my son is all about fishing. 

 

The whole culture around fishing is amazing to me. I've never really fished before this year, but man it's wild and I'm into it. I have no aspirations of entering tournaments or anything like that, but the people who are serious about are real serious about it. I'm surprised that dude was able to walk out of that parking lot. 

[Xameil]

18 hours ago, Darrell Green Fan said:

 

 I feel that way with crabs.   doesn't taste as good as crabs to me.

 

[stoshuaj]

3 hours ago, CobraCommander said:

 

 

This is a picture of a 4k lumen flashlight through someones hand. 100 Bucks, I bet I could see a lead weight in a fish. 

In this particular case it’s the weights.  There are also stipulations as to how, where and when.  

[Cooked Crack]

1 hour ago, GoCommiesGo said:

The whole culture around fishing is amazing to me. I've never really fished before this year, but man it's wild and I'm into it. I have no aspirations of entering tournaments or anything like that, but the people who are serious about are real serious about it. I'm surprised that dude was able to walk out of that parking lot. 

 

[stoshuaj]

How damn dumb are these ****ers?  
 

“Late in the proceedings, the anglers of boat No. 12, Chase Cominsky and Jake Runyan, brought their five-fish catch up for weighing. They needed to beat 16.89 total pounds to claim Team of the Year honors and $30,000 in various prizes.

Their catch’s weight: 33.91 pounds.”

 

 they thought it would be smart to more double the needed weight on 5 frigging fish that anybody w a clue knows weigh between 4/5 lbs apiece, tops.  🤦‍♂️. 

 

“ 12-ounce chunk of lead” - for whoever said those were 1oz weights.  Lol, nah, let’s drop an extra damn near 25% into a 4 lb fish and think no one will notice….

 

To answer another question that has been posed here:  

“Runyan and Cominsky had taken in somewhere around $400,000 in winnings and endorsements coming into this past weekend”

and, “First prize for the Walleye Slam was a Warrior fishing boat valued at $151,670”

Edited October 4, 2022 by stoshuaj

[TheGreatBuzz]

5 hours ago, tshile said:

I have an uncle that was a pro fisherman

 

he funded his entire life fishing. Got a new boat every year for free as part of a sponsorship, and much of his equipment was free. So he basically just banked the prize money. And was good enough to afford living like that his entire life. 
 

it’s not a bad gig if you like fishing and are good at it. 

 

I have a friend who is like that with archery.  Funds his whole lifestyle and it revolves around archery.  I remember he won a bunch of money a few years ago for hitting a life-size bear at a quarter mile.

[Dan T.]

3 hours ago, stoshuaj said:

How damn dumb are these ****ers?  
 

“Late in the proceedings, the anglers of boat No. 12, Chase Cominsky and Jake Runyan, brought their five-fish catch up for weighing. They needed to beat 16.89 total pounds to claim Team of the Year honors and $30,000 in various prizes.

Their catch’s weight: 33.91 pounds.”

”

 

They also stuck fish filets in there as well.  Which sound like a smarter way to cheat until you learn they put the buns, cheese and tartar sauce in there too.

[purbeast]

1 hour ago, Dan T. said:

 

They also stuck fish filets in there as well.  Which sound like a smarter way to cheat until you learn they put the buns, cheese and tartar sauce in there too.

LOL yeah, cause those large mouth bass filet their fish with cutlery before eating em.

[Busch1724]

If you ain't cheatin', you ain't tryin'.

[Simmsy]

Haha! Storm the capital, all good man. Cheat in a fishing contest, "they need to be in jail". Yeah, yeah, I know the amounts involved, I just don't care.

 

Morons got greedy, not sure the temps out there, but I would've put ice on them as weights. At least it has a chance to melt before anyone figures it out. Give yourself SOME leeway.

[Llevron]

13 minutes ago, Simmsy said:

Haha! Storm the capital, all good man. Cheat in a fishing contest, "they need to be in jail". Yeah, yeah, I know the amounts involved, I just don't care.

 

Morons got greedy, not sure the temps out there, but I would've put ice on them as weights. At least it has a chance to melt before anyone figures it out. Give yourself SOME leeway.

 

"Damn these some cold ass fish....Oh well. Nothing odd there" 

[Skinsfan1311]

This reminds me of a book that I've read.  Twice.     

It's clever and very funny.

 

 

[Simmsy]

1 hour ago, Llevron said:

 

"Damn these some cold ass fish....Oh well. Nothing odd there" 

 

Clearly, these fish have a cold and need medical attention.

[Destino]

I’m still wondering how they stop guys from just bringing live large fish with them.  I do they search the boats?  Do they follow them around the lake to make sure they didn’t stash them somewhere in a small cage?  One really big fish can tip the result, guaranteeing yourself three all but ensure you a win.  
 

Catching idiots that stuffed cannon balls into their bass is easy. How do you know the gish they turn up with, we’re caught today and in this lake/river?

[EmirOfShmo]

1 minute ago, Destino said:

I’m still wondering how they stop guys from just bringing live large fish with them.  I do they search the boats?  Do they follow them around the lake to make sure they didn’t stash them somewhere in a small cage?  One really big fish can tip the result, guaranteeing yourself three all but ensure you a win.  
 

Catching idiots that stuffed cannon balls into their bass is easy. How do you know the gish they turn up with, we’re caught today and in this lake/river?

Here's an article from about cheating in a tourney at Lake Powell (my highlight):

 

Two Washington City men were charged Wednesday in connection with illegally relocating live fish and attempting to cheat in a fishing tournament.

Robert Dennett, 45, of Washington City, and Kamron Wootton, 35, also of Washington City, were charged in Kane County’s 6th District Court with bribery or threat to influence a contest, a third-degree felony; unlawful release of wildlife, a class A misdemeanor; and unlawful captivity of protected wildlife, a class B misdemeanor.

Utah Division of Wildlife Resources conservation officers received a report of the illegal activity on Oct. 21, 2018, through the UTIP hotline. Organizers of a two-day Lake Powell largemouth bass fishing tournament noticed that some fish turned in by Dennett and Wootton looked much different from the other bass being turned in during the tournament.

“Some of the largemouth bass they’d turned in had little heads and fatter bodies, indicating a different diet than the fish at Lake Powell, which were more lean,” DWR Lt. Paul Washburn said. “The fish also had red fins, which indicated they had undergone some stress.”

A prize of $2,500 would be awarded to the team who turned in the five fish with the highest total weight at the tournament. These fish put the men in second place after the first day of the tournament, and also gave them the prize of the overall biggest fish. Due to the suspicious nature of the fish that were turned in, the men were disqualified from the contest. DWR conservation officers had the fish tested at a University of Utah lab, along with fish caught in Lake Powell, and were able to determine that the suspicious fish had been caught at Quail Creek Reservoir.

During the investigation, conservation officers also learned that the men had taken first, second or third place at eight other bass fishing tournaments earlier that year.

 

https://kutv.com/news/local/2-washington-city-men-charged-with-cheating-in-lake-powell-fishing-tournament

[The 12th Commandment]

Had a friend who was a game warden at lake Powell back in the late 80's and he had a good story about a fishing cheater.

 

Below the dam there is a really good striped bass fishery and they also stock it regularly with rainbow trout (from a local hatchery) which became the primary food that grew the really big stripers.  Some old boy was continually breaking into the hatchery and stealing trout to use for live bait while striper fishing, a big no-no.  They knew he was and he was setting records (which is sufficient motivation for a lot of hardcores even without money).  Set up a sting operation with night vision binos and the works but never could catch the guy.  Don't remember how they determined he wasn't just catching them but I recall that was key to the story.  He was a stealthy, bad ass fish thief.  But a poaching douchebag too.

[Destino]

That wild that labs can determine exactly where a fish was initially caught.  CSI Fisheries coming soon.  “Where’d you get the gold fish Billy Bob?  If you cooperate now, we can help you”. When suddenly a row boat explodes in the background.  

[The Sisko]

*GASP* But, but, these are good, upstanding, god fearin', upstanding, middle (real) 'Muricuh types. I just can't believe they'd do such a thing!😟

[China]

Prosecutor: Fishermen caught cheating at tournament charged

 

Two anglers accused of stuffing fish with lead weights and fillets in an attempt to win thousands of dollars in an Ohio fishing tournament were indicted Wednesday on charges of attempted grand theft and other counts.

 

Jacob Runyan, 42, of Broadview Heights, Ohio, and Chase Cominsky, 35, of Hermitage, Pennsylvania, were indicted in Cleveland on felony charges of cheating, attempted grand theft and possessing criminal tools and misdemeanor charges of unlawfully owning wild animals. They're due to be arraigned Oct. 26.

 

Neither man immediately responded to voicemails seeking comment.

 

The cheating allegations surfaced Sept. 30 when Lake Erie Walleye Trail tournament director Jason Fischer became suspicious because Runyan and Cominsky's fish were significantly heavier than walleye of that length typically are. A crowd of people at Gordon Park in Cleveland watched Fischer cut the walleye open and announce that there were weights and walleye fillets stuffed inside.

 

An officer from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources confiscated the fish as evidence.

 

Fischer also did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

 

Runyan and Cominsky would have received $28,760 in prizes for winning the tournament.

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

"And I, I walked over to the, to the bench there, and there is, Group W's Where they put you if you may not be moral enough to join the army after committing your special crime, and there was all kinds of mean nasty ugly looking people on the bench there. Mother rapers. Father stabbers. Father Rapers! Father rapers sitting right there on the bench next to me! And
They was mean and nasty and ugly and horrible crime-type guys sitting on the bench next to me. And the meanest, ugliest, nastiest one, the meanest father raper of them all, was coming over to me and he was mean 'n' ugly 'n' nasty 'n' horrible and all kind of things and he sat down next to me and said, "Kid, whad'ya get?"

 

I said, "I didn't get nothing, I had to pay $50 and give up the fish." He said, "What were you arrested for, kid?" And I said, "Cheating in a fishing tournament." And they all moved away from me on the bench there, and gave me the hairy eyeball.