{"id":400094,"date":"2026-01-11T00:06:04","date_gmt":"2026-01-11T00:06:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/400094\/"},"modified":"2026-01-11T00:06:04","modified_gmt":"2026-01-11T00:06:04","slug":"fisherman-gets-maximum-penalty-for-longline-violation-off-kona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/400094\/","title":{"rendered":"Fisherman Gets Maximum Penalty For Longline Violation Off Kona"},"content":{"rendered":"

(BIVN) \u2013 A fisherman has received the maximum administrative penalty for violating longline fishing laws off the Kona coast last May.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Konane Zager, owner of the vessel Wai\u02bbaka, will be fined $10,051.90 and have his Commercial Marine License revoked for one year, following a vote by the Hawai\u02bbi Board of Land and Natural Resources on Friday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

All the investigative materials in the Zager case will also be shared with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration\u2019s (NOAA) Office of Law Enforcement (OLE) for further investigation of potential federal law violations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Item F-1 discussed at the January 9th Board of Land and Natural Resources Meeting.<\/p>\n

From the Hawai\u02bbi Department of Land and Natural Resources:<\/p>\n

The enforcement action stems from a May 7, 2025 incident off Hawai\u02bbi Island\u2019s Kona coast. Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE) officers documented that Zager, operating the vessel Wai\u2018aka, deployed longline fishing gear extending 3.69 nautical miles \u2013 more than three times the legal limit \u2013 within Hawai\u2018i\u2019s state waters where longline fishing is prohibited.<\/p>\n

While on patrol, officers observed Zager\u2019s longline gear deployed in state waters and, while retrieving the gear, documented the take of three yellowfin tuna, two of which were later sold to a local fish buyer. The third was found alive and released to the ocean. Zager admitted to deploying the gear and acknowledged knowing it exceeded the one-nautical-mile limit.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Hawai\u02bbi DLNR photo shows the vessel Wai\u02bbaka during the enforcement action in May 2025.<\/p>\n

Zager countered the DLNR presentation with his own testimony<\/a>, raising jurisdictional issues, and framing the administrative record as incomplete and misleading.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis action sends a clear message that illegal longline fishing in Hawai\u2018i\u2019s state waters will not be tolerated,\u201d said DLNR Acting Chair Ryan K.P. Kanaka\u02bbole in a news release. \u201cOur fisheries laws exist to protect Hawai\u2018i\u2019s marine resources and ensure that fishing practices are conducted responsibly and sustainably.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cState law prohibits longline fishing in state waters to protect local fisheries and traditional fishing grounds,\u201d added DAR Administrator Brian Neilson. \u201cThe board\u2019s decision reflects the seriousness of this violation and the commitment of our enforcement and resource management teams to uphold these protections.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The DLNR says the total administrative fine and costs will be deposited into the Commercial Fisheries Special Fund, \u201cwhich supports programs and activities related to the management and conservation of Hawai\u2018i\u2019s aquatic resources used for commercial purposes.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"(BIVN) \u2013 A fisherman has received the maximum administrative penalty for violating longline fishing laws off the Kona…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":400095,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[192,79],"class_list":["post-400094","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-environment","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400094","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=400094"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400094\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/400095"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=400094"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=400094"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=400094"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}