A poacher’s most feared enemy is a concerned citizen. If that citizen has a cell phone, he’s downright dangerous.

According to an article in the St. Petersburg Times, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation (FWC) officers Kristin Cason, Liz McCoy and Raymond Sherertz acted on a tip and arrested two Palm Harbor men last Sunday night in Tampa Bay. Six thousand pounds of still-entangled roe-laden mullet weighed down their blacked-out mullet skiff.

“Once they had all those fish on board, even if they did see us coming,

their boat was too heavy to run,” said FWC Lt. Roger Young.

If convicted, Justin Castell Sawyer and Calvin Broadhead face up to a $5,000 fine and five years in jail under Florida’s stiffer felony penalties enacted in 2004. Officers added misdemeanor drug possession charges against Broadhead.

“The new penalties helped get rid of a lot of part-time poachers,” said Coastal Conservation Association Florida Executive Director Ted Forsgren. “But the hardcore guys don’t seem to care. There are plenty of them out there in full force.”

FS