Fisheries net 10,000 abalone in Australian poaching crackdown

ABC 21 Jul 08;

A crackdown on abalone poaching on the New South Wales south coast has netted 10,000 illegally caught abalone this year and at least one repeat offender has been jailed.

NSW Fisheries says poaching has been on the rise particularly since recreational bag limits and commercial quotas were drastically cut.

Fisheries investigator Nick Schroder says there is a healthy black market for the shellfish.

"Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne all have thriving black markets, they're paying as much as $75 a kilo for black market fish," he said.

"We're dealing with very well-organised syndicates, they learn from each time we apprehend them.

"They're using methods such as dummy runs, getting dropped off, they're paying what we call cockatoos or lookouts, on the rocks."