Anchorage Daily News

A city police officer in Marshall has been ticketed for illegal fishing in a summer protest of subsistence fishing restrictions.

A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service protection officer on Wednesday ticketed Jason Isaac, 32, who was one of several men who boasted of illegal fishing, Nick Andrew Jr., executive director of the Ohagamuit Traditional Council in Marshall, told The Tundra Drums on Thursday.

Andrew said Isaac was the only one ticketed and the only one to tell investigators he fished illegally. Other fishermen refused to talk when investigators flew to Marshall, a Yup'ik Eskimo village on the Yukon River about 400 miles west of Anchorage.

"I can't say anything because it may be contested and head to court," said Fish and Wildlife spokesman Bruce Woods. "All we can say is there is one ticket issued and we don't anticipate any more."

Attempts by The Associated Press to reach Isaac on Thursday were not immediately successful.

King salmon has long been a staple food along the Yukon River. Residents dry or freeze the fish to eat year round. Also, commercial fishing for the fish usually provides one of the few opportunities for villagers to make money.

Authorities severely restricted king salmon on the Yukon last summer to help the struggling run recover. Commercial fishing for king salmon was curtailed, and subsistence fishing had been limited to two, 18-hour openings each week, leaving some locals to wonder if they would have enough fish to get through the winter.

Andrew, Isaac and other fishermen told reporters they had caught 100 king salmon on June 26, during a closed fishing period, and delivered the fish to widows, elders and disabled residents.

"Canada got their quota escapement goal, and they had a commercial fishery on the other side of the border, which goes to show a lot of fish went by," Andrew told The Tundra Drums.

The tribe will fight to have the $275 ticket dismissed, he said.

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