Vietnamese restaurant boss filmed illegally hauling sea bass
Something fishy going on! Moment Vietnamese restaurant boss and two men are filmed illegally hauling 88lb of sea bass from English Channel at 4am
- Steve Cullen, 35, confronted three men hauling fish at 4am in Poole, Dorset
- Trio bundled catch into a van emblazoned with a Vietnamese restaurant slogan
- Tran Doan, 37, the owner of Eat Pho, and one other pleaded guilty to two charges
A Vietnamese restaurant boss was filmed illegally hauling fish from the English Channel in the middle of the night in shocking footage.
Steve Cullen, 35, confronted three men as they pulled ashore 40kg of sea bass at 4am in Poole, Dorset.
The trio then bundled their catch into a van emblazoned with the slogan: ‘Eat Pho. Traditional Vietnamese Rice Noodle Soup’ on the side.
A Vietnamese restaurant boss was filmed illegally hauling fish from the English Channel in the middle of the night in shocking footage
Now two of the men have pleaded guilty to illegally landing fish at Bournemouth Magistrates’ Court and ordered to pay £500 each in fines and £1,500 in court costs.
However, the court heard there was no evidence of the fish being served at the Eat Pho restaurant in the town.
Mr Cullen was napping in his car during a night fishing trip in August 2018 when one of the three men opened his car door, mistaking it for their own vehicle.
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In the clip, Mr Cullen questions them about a huge bucket of fish they have in a small boat.
He can be heard asking them: ‘What do you think you’re doing?’
Mr Cullen, from nearby Havant in Hampshire, said: ‘I jumped out to find three blokes stood there and kicked off.
In the footage, Mr Cullen films them on camera asks them about a huge bucket of fish they have in a small fishing boat
The trio then bundled their catch into a van emblazoned with the slogan: ‘Eat Pho. Traditional Vietnamese Rice Noodle Soup’ on the side
‘Wondering what three Vietnamese men were doing bringing a boat in the harbour at 4am, I went and had a look.
‘Yup, illegal gill-netting with a bucket of under size Bass there, I saw red and slung the bucket of fish back in the water, took the net off them as well.’
Tran Doan, 37, the owner of Eat Pho, and Tran Hoang, 41, of Thatcham, Berkshire, pleaded guilty to two charges last Thursday.
They admitted charges of ‘removing bass from the Poole Harbour nursery area during the sensitive summer months and taking bass below minimum size’.
The case was brought by fisheries watchdog SIFCA (Southern Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority) who said Poole Harbour was an important refuge for juvenile bass.
SIFCA member and Poole councillor Ray Tindle said: ‘Protection in the harbour allows them to grow and replenish the seriously depleted stocks.’
Responding to online criticism after the video emerged in August, Mr Doan apologised for his actions in a Facebook post saying he was fishing ‘to relax’ and didn’t know it was illegal.
He confirmed his restaurant had never served sea bass.
They admitted charges of ‘removing bass from the Poole Harbour nursery area during the sensitive summer months and taking bass below minimum size’
Tran Doan, 37, the owner of Eat Pho, and Tran Hoang, 41, of Thatcham, Berkshire, pleaded guilty to two charges last Thursday
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